Talk about Falling into Temptation
by bloodymary2
Summary: It wasn't planned. Wasn't wanted. But destiny will speak louder when it comes to Lois and Clark. Set in season 4
1. Part I Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Superman, Smallville or any other characters and ideas associated with the very first Comic Book Super hero. My work of fiction is merely based upon it. Please don't sue.

**A/N: **Warning to those who didn't take notice of the MA, very mature content, warning to this story.

**Setting: **season 4. Lois is staying at the Kent Farm and attending high school with Chloe and Clark. There was no call from a powerful LL to Met U to help her admission and she will have to finish the 5 credits she has left. _Spell_ has passed, but forget _Unsafe_ and Alicia.

_Enjoy!_

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Talk about falling into temptation

By bloodymary2

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**PART I - chapter 1**

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_She was infuriating!_

How could one person be so bossy and rude and such a pain?

It wouldn't surprise him to learn that Lois had somehow come into some sort of manual of how to drive him crazy. She stole his bed, hogged the bathroom every day, had managed to enchant his parents and now – if her presence wasn't already overbearing – she was attending the same school as him! Her smirking face, every day, in the hallways of Smallville High.

Clark sighed.

It was bad enough knowing he had lost Lana to another man, when they had come so close to actually being an item. Lana, the girl he had loved since the age of five, when he had first caught a glimpse of her beautiful, soulful eyes. His heart ached painfully and his future prospects dimmed even further at this immensurable loss. Must he always suffer? Couldn't the universe conspire in his favor just once, instead of against him?

Another sigh.

He pulled the refrigerator door open and grabbed the large jar of milk. The tall, green eyed teenager almost drank straight from the bottle, but stopped midway. Rolling his eyes, he dropped it onto the counter and reached for a glass.

The house was quiet and peaceful, a hard thing these days, and he felt a smile gracing his lips. His parents were off to Grandville for a meeting and Lois was with Chloe doing who knew what, so he had the house entirely to himself. At least for a couple of hours. With glass in hand, he turned the TV on and sat on the couch, putting his feet up.

He imagined Lana as she had looked on their freshman year and smiled, allowing his head to fall backwards as he indulged in flights of fancy. His eyes were falling close, relaxation finally achieved, when the screen door banged open. In came the bane of his existence. Clark sighed.

_Again._

He had to give it to the girl, she had timing.

"Smallville!" She came into view, hands on her hips and that smug, superior and annoying expression on her face. "Wasting away, huh?" She smirked and crossed her arms. "Let me guess, Clarkie is pinning over Lana, isn't he?"

He tried counting to ten. Stupid nickname. Then twenty. And did she have to bring up Lana? He tried it backwards and then tried counting only prime numbers. All useless.

"Don't you have any friends you can bug?" Lois rolled her eyes.

She dropped next to him on the couch, placing her legs next to his and letting loose a long suffering sigh. "I'm bored. There's nothing in this godforsaken town to do."

Lois turned her head to face him. Clark was gazing up to the ceiling, shaking his head from one side to the other. She grinned at his reaction. He was so easy to exasperate and she certainly loved doing it. There was something quite pleasing about that muscle twitching on his strong jaw. Her grin widened. She loved how his blue green eyes rolled and how his eyebrows would dip and frown when he was unable to come up with an answer to his taunting.

The brilliance of her smile dimmed.

Love was, of course, too strong a word. She just enjoyed busting his chops. Lois shrugged to herself and sat back, mimicking Clark's position. From the corner of his eye, he watched her, counting the seconds until the lack of reaction from his part made her crack. Lois was never able to stand long what she called _uncomfortable silences_.

_Three._

_Two._

_On… _

"Say something, Smallville! Can't you keep up your end of the conversation?" Hands dropped heavily to the side and she huffed. She shouldn't have expected much from such a dorky farm boy.

Clark just grinned, highly entertained.

His face rolled and he watched her pushing herself up. For the second time in a couple of minutes, his lips froze around a smile; he had a direct line of sight to Lois' ass. Clark gulped, sat up and looked down. The object of his attention remained oblivious, as she did a one eighty and caught him shaking his head.

"You okay, there, Smallville?" He ignored her question and she bent down, trying to catch his eye. "Seriously, I'm bored." Exasperated, he looked up. She was seriously unbelievab…

The breath caught in his throat.

And who could blame him, when the first thing he saw was the valley between her ample breasts, peeking from her tank top. He might have been an alien from a galaxy far, far away, but he was still male and Lois, though annoying, was still a beautiful female.

"Hey, Pervert! My eyes are up here!" Clark quickly corrected his gaze and found that the bane of his existence wasn't mad, as her voice had indicated, but amused.

_Of course._

Clark rose and rolled his eyes, angry with himself for being caught staring. And he didn't even like her! His attempt to leave, however, was unsuccessful; Lois had found something to keep herself entertained apparently. Him.

Clark huffed and dropped his head. She was infuriating!

His annoyance took second place when Lois stepped forward, breaching his personal space. He gulped. "You like what you see, huh, Clarkie?" But she couldn't stop there. No, Lois didn't believe in leaving things halfway. Another step and her chest was pushing against his, making him blush and stutter.

Lois beamed.

"Lois, ple… please."

"Please, what, Clarkie?" She caressed his arms, coming then to rest her hands around his tensed neck.

Her proximity made his temperature rise and her taunting made his temper boil. Not that he had a temper under normal circumstances, but Lois always seemed to bring out the worst in him. His eyes closed into slits and he leaned forward, bringing their noses – and lips – closer together.

"Don't play with fire, Lois. You might get burned." She only grinned harder, enjoying his sudden display of a back bone. It's not like he would go through with it, anyway. It was just innocent flirting. Amusing her, however, was not his intention; he sighed for what must have been the thousandth time since her arrival and pulled back.

"You can't win, Smallville. You shouldn't even try." She gave him a once over, making him squirm. "You're not ready for the big leagues", she whispered against his tensed lips.

Later, he would reason that she finally pushed him too far and they would argue whose fault that was. But the simple fact was that he snapped. His big hands came up to grip her hips, bringing her flush against him and raising her almost off the floor. Clark took great pleasure in the way her hands fisted around his shirt and the gasp that escaped her parted lips.

Lips that were pouty and inviting and suddenly way too close to Clark's.

"Sma…" She cleared her throat, ordering her eyes not to stray from his and to stay far, far away from his luscious lips. Which, on the long run, might have proved to be a bad idea; she could get lost into his ever changing gaze.

"Yes, Lois?" He was smirking, enjoying her speechlessness maybe a little bit more than he should. "Is the great Lois Lane really at loss for words?" No one could bring his cocky side out better than her and Clark almost felt like Kal in that moment. Not quite as ruthless, but liberated, nonetheless.

Her eyes flashed in anger and she shifted a millimeter closer, eyes closing in slits. "Payback, Smallville. Slow, agonizingly slow retribution. And when you least expect it, too". Lois wasn't one to back up from a challenge, after all. That's not how the General had raised her.

Although, it was quite possible the General didn't consider this scenario at the time.

Clark's smile slipped and an intense expression settled over his strong features. His earlier intentions of getting the upper hand were forgotten as his gaze involuntarily fell onto her dangerously close and inviting lips. He wanted to kiss her so badly. And he was still sure he didn't like her! Talk about confusing.

He frowned. Then gulped.

_What was going on?_

"Lois?" He whispered. She hummed in reply, biting her lower lips in a blatant display of anxiety. She wasn't as unaffected as she might have wanted. Neither pulled back, though, too caught up in each other to consider the consequences of what they were thinking of doing. There seemed to exist a strange pull between them and Clark couldn't help but contemplate at its sudden appearance.

_Had something changed?_

He couldn't have possibly felt this from the beginning. Surely he would have kissed her by now if that had been the case. The pull was so intense and her body fit so perfectly against his. All other thoughts were being pushed to the back of his mind and when that happened, instincts spoke louder.

"Clark… What are we doing?" Their parted lips were a hair breadth away from meeting in amazing passion and even her unsure question sounded alluring. Her fingers softly caressing the back of his neck didn't hurt either.

_Oh, the hell with it…_

A small move and their breaths weren't the only thing comingling. Softly, they touched, brushing together. Small kisses, with eyes still open and connected. Tentative, really. Clark caught her lower lip between his, sucking gently. In response, Lois tilted her head back and opened her mouth further, licking the skin most near. He gently bit the lip he had been worrying.

Lois moaned, a quiet sound from the back of her throat that Clark felt all the way down. He wanted to hear it again.

His tongue soothed the bite and licked the skin of her inner lip, watching the fascinating way her eyes glazed over. Almost timidly, he sought her tongue with his, finding her more than compliant. As the kiss deepened, their eyes finally slid close.

It was sensual, this kiss. Unhurried and hot and unlike anything they had ever experienced before. There was no thought, no worries and concept of time. Just their lips and tongues and bodies pressed so very close, not even the clothes they wore could disguise the curves beneath. Just hands that buried themselves in hair, that squeezed hard abs and slim waist, that skimmed over forbidden places, touching the skin left exposed by t-shirts that had ridden up.

In fact, it was Lois' hand playing with the skin over his belt buckle that snapped Clark out of his trance. He couldn't do it; the fear of hurting her was greater than the fire burning within him. With a groan, he pulled back, using his grip on her hips to push their bodies apart and somehow willing the passionate haze his mind was currently under to dissipate.

"L… L… ois." He swallowed hard and said her name again, using it as an anchor to ground himself and bring her back to reality. "Lois."

Her lips were swollen and red and strands of her blonde hair had fallen from the ponytail she had been sporting. Clark hadn't expected the sight of her to arouse him so, specially looking so disheveled. This was Lois, for Heaven's sake! He didn't like her. In fact, there were times he downright hated her! Hated the way she could never let anything go and they way she was always busting his chops and crashing into his life.

_He didn't like her._

He didn't.

Clark withdrew his hands from her hips as if he had been burned and that proved to be just the dose of reality Lois needed. Her eyes cleared and her inviting lips closed. A cool façade of indifferent descend over her face. Her reaction hurt, though Clark would be hard pressed to explain the reason for that.

"Well… that was unexpected." Lois brushed her bangs aside and took her time fixing her hair. Calmly – too calmly -, she made sure her yellow t-shirt was back in place and then met Clark's expecting gaze. "Well, Smallville, don't stand there looking like a seven year old who just saw his parents doing the horizontal tango for the first time."

Her crude words would have normally irritated him, if not for the way she tucked her hands into her back pockets; a sure sign of uncertainty where Lois was concerned. She probably hadn't seen that coming, either.

"Uh, I guess we'll have to count that one as a tie." Her confused expression lasted but a millisecond.

_You can't win, Smallville. You shouldn't even try._

Lois visibly relaxed and nodded. "You'll grow a pair, yet, Smallville." They shared small smiles that felt incredibly awkward, before Lois did an about face, whipping her ponytail behind her. Over her shoulder, in a casual manner, she said, "See ya later!" and left. When the door clicked shut, Clark finally released the breath he had been holding.

His head dropped.

_What was he doing!_

A fluke, that must have been it. Lois was always teasing him and questioning his masculinity and he snapped. Plus, with Lana lost to Jason, his levels of frustration had to have reached maximum. The name of the girl he had loved for so long left a bitter taste in his mouth; he hadn't thought of her once while Lois had been in his arms and Clark felt like he had betrayed her somehow.

A hand came up to scrunch his already messy hair and then rubbed against his face, willing for this to have been nothing more than a dream… or better yet, a nightmare! It wasn't the first time Lois had caused a strong reaction in him. True. Usually, though, he felt like strangling her, not swapping spit. It was all so complicated!

Clark sighed, dropping his weight onto the couch.

The reasoning started soon thereafter. It was a onetime thing, after all. He didn't lust after Lois and this would never happen again. In fact, they would do the avoidance they were so good at when something happened that stepped outside the boundaries of their strange friendship and then go back to normal. Clark found himself nodding.

Normal was good.

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Please review!


	2. Part I Chapter 2

**A/N: **Double treat for you. I have it all mostly written, lacking only the epilogue, so I'll post something new everyday. Review!

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**PART I - Chapter 2**

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"Oh, for Heaven's sake, Lois! Stop pacing and fidgeting like a, a…" Lois willed herself to still and turned to look at her cousin sitting in front of her computer at the Torch. The blonde looked exasperated and continued to search for an expression that could properly convey that.

Lois raised an eyebrow. "A, huh? A tiger in a tiny cage? A fish in a tank full of sharks? A college bound girl forced to relive the not so glorious days of high school in Podunk, Kansas?" Though standing relatively still, there was an air of edginess to her and the frustrated tirade didn't help to dispel.

Chloe sighed.

"Look, Lois, I know this isn't what you had planned, but I don't understand why you're so restless. C'mon, it's just a semester and then you are out of here!" The amused way she usually dealt with her cousin's sarcasm regarding Smallville was gone. Lois' behavior the past couple of days had been grating on her nerves. "What happened anyway? You've been less than your usual charming self lately."

Chloe's natural sense of curiosity was immediately peeked, when Lois went rigid at the question. The cub reporter narrowed her eyes and watched attentively as her cousin swallowed hard and averted her gaze.

Something had definitely happened.

"Uh, nothing _happened_…" Chloe found it odd that Lois put such emphasis on the verb. "I'm just… edgy."

"Uh huh… And I'm going to pretend I believe you." Though dying to pry further, Chloe knew when to approach with utmost caution; Lois might have been naturally straightforward and brutally direct, but no one had quite the fortress her cousin had constructed around herself. "Now, since I'm such an amazing cousin, I'll aid in your credit count." She produced a sheet. "Rumors surrounding drugs in the football team's locker room… bring me an exposé."

She grinned. Her taller cousin groaned.

"Oh, Chloe. I'm not cut out for this journalism thing. Don't you have another reporter lying around?" Lois snatched the sheet Chloe had offered and scanned its content. "First the cheerleaders spiking the jocks juice and now the jocks themselves attempting to chemically enhance their body mass. Don't these people learn from their mistakes?"

"Exactly! You are already feeling the story pulling you in…"

"Hardily", she mumbled.

Chloe rolled her eyes. "Besides, with your mind occupied, maybe that other thing that is _not_ bothering you will stop making you so edgy." Lois huffed and brushed her bangs aside, but made no other comment.

"Perfect!" A smile brightened her face. "Just don't forget to use the spell check, okay?" Chloe watched her cousin leave. "How you can write so well and yet have such atrocious spelling is beyond me, anyway." The blonde muttered under her breath, a twinge of jealousy coloring her words.

It's not that she felt threatened by Lois, journalism was totally her thing. There were times, though, that Chloe couldn't help feeling a bit resentful by the way it all came so naturally to her cousin. Boys, classes, investigative journalism… If she wasn't so lazy and had an attendance record that wasn't as appalling as her spelling, Lois would be a force to be reckoned with.

_Sigh. _

Chloe hated being jealous and of her cousin of all people.

"Stop it, Chlo. Plenty of room for both of you in the world." She clicked on the icon for InDesign and went to work on _The Torch's_ next edition.

She's not even interested in the same career as you. Or the same boys.

Nothing to worry about.

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Lois kept her eyes firmly focused on her plate, not even Martha Kent's wonderful cuisine able to make her enjoy dinner. The reason? Sitting right in front of her, looking at her with blue green eyes that held too many memories not to make her nervous. It had been like this for the past three days. Breakfast, school and dinner. It was impossible to avoid Clark completely and all Lois could say was…

_Crap._

Really, there was no better way to explain this situation she had inadvertently put herself into. Did she have to tease him? Did she have to put herself in that position? She had jumped head first without checking the water level and now Lois couldn't even look at him without remembering that earth shattering kiss they had shared.

She didn't even like him!

Sure, Clark Kent had a body that had temptation written all over it. His eyes were profound in a way you couldn't quite put into words. His smile could melt the strictest of women. And he was tall! A rare commodity when one had towered over other boys since the age of thirteen. He had charm, when he felt like it and no one could deny he was a regular boy scout. Except that he was infuriating and broodish and perpetually hung up on self centered Lana Lang. All qualities Lois hated. There might have been physical attraction, but he wasn't her type.

And Chloe was in love with him.

That made Smallville one hundred percent off limits.

The problem was that the physical pull proved to be stronger than she had anticipated. Lois had avoided Clark like the plague for the past three days not because she was embarrassed or – God forbid – fighting growing feeling for the farm boy. No. Lois Lane was terrified that the spark between might ignite and burn and ruin everything.

Lois had so quickly lost her head that afternoon and that was even before he kissed her. Which was not good.

She couldn't seduce the son of the couple who had so graciously taken her in when the General had enforced his tough love strategy. She couldn't do that to Martha and Jonathan Kent. She couldn't do that to Chloe. And she wouldn't do that to herself.

Not again.

Besides, she didn't like him. At all.

"Lois, are you okay?" Martha's welcoming voice reached her inner discourse. "I don't think I've ever seen you so quiet."

The girl forced herself to meet the red headed woman's gaze and managed even to produce a smile. "I'm okay, Mrs. K. I'm just tired, what with school and the Torch. Journalism is harder work than I had anticipated and Chloe is a tough boss. And it's getting colder. I was never a big fan of winter. Allergies. And spring, too. But that's because of the excessive pollen in the air. Did you know that…"

Her diatribe was cut short when she realized her words were practically incomprehensible babbling. She did that when she was nervous. That and quick exits. Would it be too impolite to excuse herself now?

Mrs. Kent was staring at her with that all knowing 'I-can-see-right-through-you' look mothers all over the world seemed to have mastered and Lois felt like a small child being scolded. And Clark was still boring holes into her skull! She shot him a reproachful look and then smiled at his mother.

"I'm okay, Mrs. K. Really." _Liar._

Martha chose to accept her reassurance, either because she bought it or because she preferred not to grill her in front of witnesses. Lois was sure it was the second and was not looking forward to that talk. Or any talk, for that matter.

Sigh.

She had to deal with this, though. With Clark Kent and that kiss. They couldn't go on like this for the next three months, before she could make her escape to Met U. One way or another, they had to put this incident behind them. And Lois was a firm believer in the present.

Most times.

"So, Mr. Kent. Mrs. K told me you would have to go to Metropolis for a checkup. Is everything okay?" Not the most subtle or politically correct approach, but Lois wasn't known for those, anyway.

"Yes, Lois, everything's okay. Doctor's are just excessively prone to exaggeration." Clark's look and Martha's reaction spoke to the contrary, although Lois chose not to pry. To each his own, right?

"Either way, we'll be going to Met Gen tomorrow for those exams." Mrs. K's gaze didn't waver from her husband's stubborn face and all in the room understood the firm tone of her voice. He would be going, no excuses allowed.

As her mouth closed around the piece of peach cobbler Martha had prepared for desert, Lois finally met Clark's gaze head on. It was obvious he understood what she had meant with her question. She and Clark would have the house to themselves for that talk they so desperately needed to have. Lois could already predict the inevitable awkwardness and wasn't looking forward to it. It had to be done, though. Sooner rather than later.

She swallowed and looked away.

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Clark waved his parents goodbye, feeling a mix of relief and dread. He understood the need to talk about the 'incident', as he had taken to calling his make out session with Lois. In fact, he wanted to have that talk. The tension hanging in the air between them was becoming unbearable and they couldn't go on avoiding each other forever. Even if she had thrown herself into avoiding him much more passionately than he had her. Clark couldn't quite explain it, his yearning to see her all the time, and hadn't really fought against it.

But the idea of being alone in the house with her, no one to interrupt them if things got out of hand again, was quite frightening. Staring at the hungry lion on his den was one thing, going in to offer himself as snack was simple suicide.

He shook his head, hiding his hands in the front pockets of his jeans. It was an absurd thought, really. Nothing was going to happen.

With slow steps, he made his way to the porch, entered the house and closed the door behind him.

"So…" He gulped. Suddenly, the talk didn't seem like such a good idea.

"Smallville, I'm going to make this brief and to the point, cause there is no need to drag this any further than it has already gone." The only tell of her nervousness was the way her arms were tightly crossed. "One, what we did was the result of some innocent flirting and means nothing. I am a girl and you are a relatively attractive guy… it was almost expected. Two, we can't keep this tension around. We can't even look at each other and other people are starting to notice." She paused and bit her lower lip. "And… that's pretty much it."

"I'm not the only one who's having a hard time acting normal, Lois." Clark felt angry at her apparent nonchalance, dismissing it all. "You won't even look in my direction most of the time." He withdrew his hands from his pockets, straightened his back and took two steps forward.

"That's the point of this conversation, Clark." She whispered, still avoiding his gaze.

"Okay." Another step forward. "Then look at me."

Lois froze and the arms she had crossed tightened around her lithe form; she was hugging herself. She hated feeling as vulnerable as she felt right then. And there was nothing she loathed more than allowing Clark to get the upper hand. When did he grown so confident, anyway?

Deep breaths, a small inner pep talk later and she looked up.

Clark was less than a foot away. Too close for comfort. Her heart disobeyed a direct order and beat too frantically; it nearly seemed desperate to break through her aching chest. And she still couldn't raise her eyes higher than his broad, white t-shirt covered chest.

_Gulp._

"C'mon, Lois. Consider this a test to see if we can co-exist normally for the next couple of months." Feeling bold and angry and too much out of control to stop, Clark took another step, completely bridging the space still left between them.

Her breath caught and, like a train wreck about to happen, she couldn't help raising her eyes to his strong neck, then to his luscious, kissable lips and finally, to his blue green eyes. The trance and fog, that had been responsible for this mess to begin with, returned full force. So, she did the only thing her numb mind could think of doing.

Lois kissed him.

It didn't take long for Clark to reciprocate, his strong arms consuming her. This kiss, however, was much more frenzied then their first, arms and bodies and tongues raging a battle neither was willing to lose.

How they got to the second floor would forever remain a mystery to Lois. Not that she wasted a second caring; she was too busy lying down onto the soft mattress of his bed and pulling him with her.

His body was heavy over hers and Lois relished in the perfect feeling of being completely enveloped by him. Clark's mouth was teasing her neck with bites and licks and open mouthed kisses that sent shivers up and down her spine, while his hands drew circles under her ribs, tantalizingly close to her aching breasts, but not quite there. The hard back muscles under her hands rippled as he moved and Lois held on tightly as he evoked moans and gasps from her.

It was sweet torture.

And so not what she had planned.

Desperate to move things further and release the almost unbearable tension growing with her, Lois bent her right knee and used the extra leverage to increase the friction between their lower regions. She could feel Clark Jr. pressed against her jeans and wished the clothes still separating them would just melt away. Clark returned the friction and bit her earlobe, making her arch against him.

"God, Smallville." Once again, words were responsible for breaking the trance and they both froze up. Not for the first instance, they caught themselves wondering what they were doing and how it was they had gotten so far in the blink of an eye.

Lois' gaze was fixed on the ceiling, Clark's face was hidden in the nook of her neck and their hands remained where they were, too unsure of how to untangle themselves with the least embarrassment for either party. He was the one to finally make the first move, slowly raising his head and meeting her gaze. For a second, they looked at each other, trying to find in the other' eyes, what they couldn't figure out alone.

"I…" Lois licked her dry lips, drawing Clark's attention to them; she swallowed hard. "I thought we were here to… talk."

His intense green orbs observed her intently and Lois couldn't help the accelerated beating of her heart. Treacherous organ! She just hoped he couldn't feel it, though considering their closed proximity and touching chests, it was a futile hope.

"Why did you kiss me?" His breath brushed her lips and his chest reverberated against hers in a most enticing way. How was a girl supposed to think under these circumstances? She gulped.

"You were standing too close." Maybe other people would have had a hard time accepting such a weak argument, but Clark had been there and understood all too greatly what she meant to say; he wasn't the only one who lost control.

"Sorry."

Lois sighed.

"We have got to stop doing this, Clark. What is this anyway?" She made the mistake of shifting, which resulted in Clark's still engorged length to rub against the place between her legs. Involuntarily, she dropped her head back and moaned. He didn't fare any better.

They were in serious danger of losing touch with reality. Again.

"Don't move… please." Clark begged. Lois wanted to comply. She really did. Wasn't this whole thing embarrassing enough as it was? Except that she was already so wet , her skin was humming with so much tension and her nipples actually hurt, so excited she was. She couldn't take four more days of utter sexual frustration. With achingly slow rhythm, she impulsively rocked against him. "God… Lois."

The way he said her name, his breath catching in the first syllable and the drawing of the second, increased the tingling in her skin. With no conscious thought involved, she found herself burying her hand in his silky hair. Lips again close to touching, she locked onto his hazy green orbs.

"Just…" She arched against him. "Just… Please." Their mouths met, more breath being shared than an actual kiss. "I can't take this anymore."

And neither could he.

Feeling bold and more aroused than he had ever felt in his whole life, Clark captured her temptingly lush lips in a wet, deep kiss. The time to hold back, though, was over and soon, his kisses trailed down her cheeks, swept pass the sensitive skin behind her ear and came to land in the valley of her neck. Lower still he went, until his path met the resistance of her tank top.

Hands caressed her arms and squeezed her slender shoulders, before grabbing the straps of her top and bra and unashamedly pulling them down. Lois found herself exposed. His lips didn't waste any time and latched onto a rose colored nipple, pertly calling to him. He licked it and ran his teeth over the top and sucked it; Lois' body was quivering beneath him, as her hand held on tightly to his hair, for both guidance and support.

"Oh… Right there." While deft fingers played with the swollen nipple, he continued on to its twin. "Cl… Clark!"

She was so close and yet so far and she needed more. So much more.

Clark's nose nuzzled the small depression in the middle of her ribcage, going down towards her belly button and taking with him the top and bra he had clasped in fists. The muscles of her abdomen contracted and he heard the air catch in her throat. With a smile of satisfaction, he dove in and used his tongue to circle the perfect button until Lois was panting.

The cloth of her top came over the low rise jeans and Clark wasted no time in working the two buttons that held the fabric closed. If he paused, if he hesitated, reality might intrude into their moment and he wasn't ready for that. Not yet. Lois, arms trapped by the lowered material, pulled them free and again buried her fingers in his hair.

In his eagerness to remove the several layers of clothes bundled around her hips, Clark pulled hard. There was a tearing sound they both were too engrossed to consciously acknowledge. All they knew was that the material became loose and easier to take off. He sat back on his haunches and liberated her long lower limbs. The skin of her ankles was so smooth and the muscles of her legs taunt and he was having a difficult time deciding whether he should run his hands over them or his lips. In the end, he did both, one after the other. Shortly, he found himself between her thighs and that much closer to where he wanted to go.

Lois' completely naked body contorted in pleasure, while her hands fisted the comforter she was lying on. Heat was coming off in waves of her sweat covered skin and the only coherent thought she could muster was 'more'. There were only moans and groans and whimpers coming from her, though. Especially when Clark's breath hit the extremely sensitive skin of her aching lower lips.

She had never done _that_ before.

And then he was tracing her with the tip of his tongue and scraping his teeth on her clit and plunging his tongue deep within her tight walls. What was already mind numbing pleasure escalated to unbelievable heights. Lois trashed and squirmed and arched herself against his provoking mouth, her hand once again massaging his scalp and fisting his hair.

In and out, his tongue tortured her, his finger never wavering from her susceptible clit. His other hand came under her to lift her body, giving him better access. Still, she moaned, an inch from the most glorious edge. His teeth came into play, showing no mercy and it all finally proved to be too much. Her thighs squeezed his head cradled between them, her inner walls contracted wildly and her body almost left the mattress completely, as Lois achieved a powerful orgasm.

Clark didn't stop; couldn't stop. His tongue and fingers continued to work her over, not wanting it all to be over quite so soon. So, before Lois could come down from her high, another wave of unbelievable pleasure crashed onto her and then another.

She couldn't breathe properly, her chest moving up and down in short pants. Her skin glistened with sweat and her eyes, closed since before Clark had managed to remove all of her clothing, remained shut. It all seemed to last forever.

After it was over, Clark's head on her belly and arms loose at her sides, Lois fought against the feeling of satisfying unconsciousness that threatened to conquer her after her mind blowing triple orgasm. The best part was still to come. When her breathing managed to return to semi normality and darkness was pushed aside – at least temporarily -, Lois pulled at Clark, wanting for him to come up to her level. He complied, though somewhat reluctantly.

Their eyes met and Lois immediately saw the strain in his gaze. "Clark?"

He shifted uncomfortably and his answer became unnecessary. He looked rather embarrassed and Lois couldn't help smirking. Trust Smallville to be self-conscious by this after what they had been doing for the past hour. Lois might have felt completely exhausted, but she wasn't about to leave the poor guy hanging like that. Capturing his mouth in a slow kiss, her hand slid between them and brushed his straining erection through the stiff fabric of his jeans.

That couldn't be comfortable.

Clark moaned into her mouth and bit her lower lip in appreciation. However, when Lois went to snap the button of his pants, he froze and caught her hands in his. Lois frowned and pulled slightly back.

"What is it, Smallville?"

"I… we can't do this." Lois mockingly laughed.

"Really? I think it's a little late for your prudish ways." She attempted to free her wrists and resume her earlier intent, but Clark held on tight. A little too tight. "Ow!"

Faster and much more graceful than a guy with a painful bonner should ever be able to move, Clark was off of her and out of the bed. His face was somber, almost angry and he sturdily avoided looking at her.

"What the hell is wrong with you, anyway?" Lois sat up and pulled the comforter around her naked body. She felt confused and hurt. They might not be the greatest of friends and besides a strange physical attraction, they hadn't all that much in common. Clark's reaction, though, caused a spear of pain in her heart. And the uncertainty…

_Had she done something wrong?_

Admittedly, she didn't have vast experience, but some things were instinctual.

"I'm sorry. It's just… I can't." And just like that, tears swelled in her eyes. She suppressed them, angry at herself for allowing such vulnerability to pierce her protective walls. Her face drained of all emotion.

"Whatever, Smallville. It's just sex. If you don't want to do it, that's your problem, not mine." She used the comforter to hide her nakedness like a toga and rose from the bed. When her hand landed on the knob, she quickly turned it and opened the door.

"I am… really sorry, Lois. I shouldn't have allowed things to get so far." Lois pretended not to hear him and continued forward, determined to reach the bathroom before her fight against the sob stuck in her throat was lost.

Clark stepped forward and brushed her bare shoulder, withdrawing his hand quickly thereafter, as if he had been burned.

"I just… I don't want to hurt you."

_Too late. Much too late._

Lois didn't falter or turn back and the sound of the bathroom door closing behind her echoed much too loudly in the silence of the house. Clark flinched. Lois held it all in for exactly four seconds, before her legs gave out from under her and tears carved brand new tracks on her reddened cheeks.

She had known this inexplicable pull between them would end badly. How could it not? She just hadn't been able to predict how she would feel, so utterly shattered. It wasn't supposed to feel this way. She shouldn't have been so affected by an unfinished roll in the hay with small town boy scout, Clark Kent.

It was ridiculous.

And it wouldn't happen again.

_Ever._

She was done having her heart broken.


	3. Part I Chapter 3

**PART I**** - Chapter 3**

* * *

If Lois had been fidgety before, she was downright immobile now.

Chloe watched her cousin reading a big chemistry book. The Torch editor could only guess it was for the story she had been assigned with writing, since Lois wasn't known for her dedication to the academics. She was perusing the pages seemingly uninterested and unfocused. Worst, she looked melancholic.

Which was very uncharacteristic of her.

"Lois?" She didn't hear or didn't feel like acknowledging the call. "Lois!"

Calmly, almost as if in slow motion, she glanced up at her baby cousin. Her eyes looked troubled, Chloe couldn't help but think. Less bright then before.

"Is everything okay?" Chloe's eye brows furrowed. "You seem so despondent."

"I'm fine." Lois returned to her reading. Except that she was now worrying her lip. "Chloe?"

"Yeah?" She made sure not to seem too eager.

"Do you… Are you…" Lois paused and then sighed. "Never mind."

"No, c'mon. You can ask me anything. I'm your couz. Besides, I have this whole confidentiality thing down pat."

A long pause. Chloe was almost giving up for now, when Lois sighed again. "Do you still have a crush on Clark?"

It was a strange question and she couldn't phantom how that could be related to her older cousin's strange behavior as of late, which made Chloe suspicious that she was just trying to change the subject.

"I'd be lying if I said no." Chloe stared at Lois intensely. "Why?"

Lois still stared at the thick book, almost afraid of glancing up and that made Chloe's worry skyrocket; Lois Lane wasn't afraid of anything. "I… I was just…" She swallowed her and turned a page, though it was obvious she wasn't reading a word. "How... How does it feel?"

The school paper editor cocked her head to the side and observed her cousin more closely. Lois was brash and in your face and had never had any problems in getting a guy to notice her, even if her dating record wasn't all that great. But such an insecure question could mean that Lois had never really been in love and Chloe found that hard to believe.

Hadn't there been a guy named Kurt, with a penchant for trouble and leather? Chloe distinctively remembered Lois had lost her virginity to the bad boy and her last semester at school, too. Uncle Sam's shouts were probably ringing in several soldier's ears still.

What other reason could reduce her dear cousin to this insecure girl, though?

Chloe breathed in deeply. "It's just a crush, Lo. I…" She smiled. "I used to imagine what it would feel like to have him look at me the way he looked at Lana, to have his strong arms hold me and to kiss him. I mean, really kiss him, no simple peck on the lips."

Lois finally glanced up, a frown marring her troubled face. "Used to? You don't imagine that anymore?"

The short blonde girl shrugged. "It was always a fantasy. After everything that happened, I don't expect it to come true anymore."

"Still… how did it feel?"

"Painful." Chloe answered truthfully. "Lois… is there someone, you know, you may like?"

"No, of course not!" Lois laughed, confusing the other girl even more. It was a cynical laugh and it ended in an almost sob. Recomposing herself, Lois breathed in deeply and shrugged. The thick chemistry book was shut with a loud thud and Lois rose to her feet, looking at any available surface other than Chloe's desk. "Anyway… I have to go."

Reproachfully, she watched her cousin make a quick getaway. Left alone with her half finished pages for tomorrow's edition and an empty room, Chloe whispered softly to herself. "I'm getting worried here, Lo."

She had never seen Lois so dejected. So gloomy. So… She couldn't find the right word. All of the above together and not quite it, yet. Something was seriously troubling her cousin and Chloe wanted to be the supportive type and let the girl come to her. But such exercise in patience was never her forte and she was just too inquisitive and worried to try.

xxxxxxx

Lana was coming down the stairs that lead to the apartment above with Chloe on her heals. The two friends were joking and laughing good naturedly. They made their way through the busy floor of the Talon, filled with high school students, still joking around. After grabbing two lattes, they escaped to the sun kissed sidewalks of Main Street.

"God, Lana. The look on his face!" Chloe giggled.

"I know! " Lana shook her head with disbelief. "He's shy and all, but I have never seen him blushing like that." She paused. "What was Lois said to him?"

Chloe shrugged. "I have no idea." She sobered a bit. "You know, Lois has been acting strange lately. And moody. I think she finds making Clark squirm a sport or something."

The brunette leaned her head to the side, a strand of silky hair escaping from her up do. "Is everything okay with her?"

"Maybe. She won't talk to me." Chloe bit her lower lip, glancing down. She was unsure of how much she could share with Lana without betraying Lois. "She never held back like this before."

"I hate that." The blonde looked up.

"What?" asked Chloe, confused.

"All that secrecy and half baked answers, Clark's so good at. You're cousins! If she can't trust you, who's she going to trust?"

Chloe didn't necessarily agree with her friend. Like her cousin had once told her, when she had been swimming in her obsession with unraveling all of Clark Kent's secrets last year, people kept secrets for a reason. The reasons may be dumb to everyone else, but not to the person who believed in it and it wasn't anyone's business to question it. Her natural curiosity and journalistic personality made it hard for her to keep her nose out of it most of the times, but Lois had been right.

"Maybe she feels like she can't tell me…" Pause. "Maybe she doesn't think I would understand." Chloe reasoned.

"Oh, c'mon, Chloe! That's a cop out!" Pause. "And such a Clark thing to say, too."

Listening to Lana, Chloe couldn't help but frown at her friend's hostility. She would be the first to admit Clark could be frustrating at times. He was a good person, though. Loyal and always ready to help anyone who needed it. And he was her best friend. If she couldn't forgive his faults, who would. And, it wasn't like she was perfect either. Nor was Lana.

"Clark's my friend; he's entitled to his secrets or whatever it is he feels like he has to hide from the rest of the world."

Lana huffed, turned away and slowly shook her head in clear disagreement. She didn't say anything, though, refusing to argue with her friend. Lately, with the whole Jason thing, people had looked at her with judgment in their eyes and Chloe had remained steady in their friendship; Lana didn't want to lose that.

Gaze scanning the street lazily, she sipped her latte. That's when she caught sight of something quite unexpected.

Lois and Clark.

She was walking briskly down the sidewalk on the other side of the street, her blond ponytail swinging from side to side. Clark was almost jogging a few feet behind her, eyes focused on the fleeing girl.

"Chloe?" The blonde turned to her and Lana motioned to the strange scene with the tall coffee cup she had been nursing. Together, they watched, curious and a bit puzzled.

Clark's longer legs allowed him to catch up to Lois in no time. His arm extended towards her and he gently caught her hand in his, successfully bringing her to a stop. Lois jerked her hand away as if burned and said something neither of the curious girls could hear. Clark shrugged and buried his hand in the front pocket of his jeans. He only did that when he was feeling insecure, both friends knew. Lois crossed her arms and said something else. Immediately, Clark glanced up and stared.

Lana and Chloe could feel the intensity of his stare all the way from where they stood.

Lois hesitated, shifted from one foot to the other and then offered him a small, simple nod. Then, she was gone, her power walk resumed with even greater intensity, as if escaping the Devil himself.

"What the hell was that?" Wondered Chloe.

"I have no idea." Lana watched Clark shuffle his feet and then turn to walk in the other direction. She recognized that dejected look and felt a twinge of hurt that it wasn't because of her. He had only ever reacted like that because of her.

"Chloe?" Lana turned and caught her friend's frowning gaze. "You said Lois was acting strange. You think something happened? That maybe they had a fight or something?"

Chloe shrugged, as if unsure, but there was a spark of understanding in her eyes Lana simply could not miss. "You know something."

Lana waited for Chloe to share with her whatever thoughts and suspicions she had. The girl remained evasive, however, a bad habit she must have picked up from spending too much time with Clark. The raven haired girl insisted, thinking herself entitled to the truth, especially if it concerned Clark Kent. No committal answers and shrugs and Chloe was finally getting fed up with Lana's egocentric speech.

She excused herself and left, a frown still marring her delicate face.

xxxxxxxxx

The hallways of Smallville High were pretty much deserted at this late hour and seemed eerie to a nervous Lois Lane as she waited for Clark to make his appearance. She shifted her weight from one foot to the other, crossing and uncrossing her arms, while looking up and down the corridor for any sign of the farmboy.

To be completely honest with herself – and that's something she had been having a hard time doing lately -, Lois was feeling a bit excited at the prospect of seeing him again. Despite the hurt of being rejected the day before last and the awfully confusing feelings she dared not yet name, his presence alone could make her skin tingle. So, she didn't want to think about what it meant and didn't want to stop to consider all the reasons why they shouldn't even contemplate a repeat of that day.

All Lois yearned for was his lips against hers.

"You're such a perv, Lane." Deep breath.

Clark, though wholesome farmboy, seemed immensely scared of intimacy and she had no idea why. He seemed willing enough, before going all prudish on her. Lois rolled her eyes. God only knew the inner workings of his brain. But, after almost a whole week of frustration and nervousness, Lois was ready to take matters into her own hands.

She would make him see the error of his ways.

"Do I even want to know why you're smirking like that?" His deep voice startled her and she glanced up quickly.

He was standing too close again.

"Uh… Smallville." A dry swallow, a shifting of weight and the uncertainty of where to land one's gaze dominated the next couple of seconds. Clark buried his hands deep in his pockets and shuffled his foot against the linoleum floor.

"Lois, I…" Deep breath. "I just wanted to say I'm sorry for... for… uh… You know." Lois suppressed the need to roll her eyes again. "And I wanted to maybe… I don't know, fix this thing between us." He glanced up and then quickly down again. "You… I mean, despite everything, we're friends… right?"

Seeing Clark like that, practically blubbering fool that she had accused him of being on several occasions, made her anxiety dissipate a little. Lois watched his long lashes against his cheek and the mass of dark hair she had run her hands through and realized that she may not always like him, but she certainly wanted him. Now.

_Oh, the joys of conflicting emotions._

"Lois?" He was gazing at her through half lowered lids, looking unconsciously sexy.

"Yes, Clark?"

"So… friends?" Lois took her time sweeping his tall, desirable frame from top to bottom, both enjoying the view and the way he squirmed under her scrutiny.

"Friends…" A smile blossomed upon her lips and she finally met his intense, color changing eyes. "And you said, you'd make up to me… for leaving me like I was riddled with a contagious disease or something?"

Clark gulped, feeling even worse for his behavior at hearing her words. He had already felt immense guilt for making her cry that night; no matter how quiet she had tried to be, hidden behind the bathroom door, he'd heard her. Rejecting her had never been his intention, though he remained hard pressed to explain that to her without revealing too much.

It always came down to that… his powers. His heritage.

He was so tired of it all.

"Earth to Clark!" He snapped to and breathed in deeply.

"Lois, I do want to make it up to you. Just… how?" The sudden gleam in her eyes frightened him in a way nothing else ever had. What could she possibly have in mind? Clark gulped. Again.

Lois, for her part, decided, in true Lois fashion, to throw caution and consequence out the window and do what she had promised herself she wouldn't do: seduce Clark Kent. She had to put this frustration and insecurity behind her and there was no better way to it. Knowing his probable reaction, she would have to be swift and decisive. So, Lois spared no second thought to it, before she grabbed him by the lapels of his horrendous red jacket and dragged him to the nearest room with a door.

The janitor's closet.

With fumbles and pulls, she opened the door and pushed him inside. Clark's back hit the wooden door with a muffled thud, his weight just the needed force to slam the door shut. Lois still held the lapels of his red jacket in fists and the intense look in her gleaming eyes made his breath catch.

This wasn't exactly what he had in mind.

"Lois…" Her jaw was set in a determined and, he dared think, stubborn way, as she leaned forward, her lips barely grazing his.

"No talking, Smallville." She captured his lips in a sensual kiss reminiscent of their first, taking her time biting his lower lip and licking the row of perfectly white teeth behind it. "And no stopping until I say so, this time."

Clark wanted to protest. Truly, he did. The janitor's storeroom was hardily the place for a make out session and they still hadn't talked properly about what had happened before. And, off all the crazy schemes he had imagined she would concoct to make them 'even', this hadn't come close to crossing his mind. No matter how much the thought of getting carried away and accidently hurting Lois scared him, however, the temptation to kiss her back was stronger. It wasn't long before his hands came up to bring her body closer to his.

_Lord in heaven, could she kiss!_

Lois teased him until she felt a bulge pressing against her lower belly. That's when she forced her lips away from him and attacked his neck with scrapping teeth and open mouth kisses, making him moan and squeeze her waist. Lower she went, her hands caressing the strong abs of his still clothed chest. It actually took Clark a moment to realize she was on her knees, mouth trailing kisses on the sensitive skin above his belt.

"Loi… Lois… what are y… you doing?" His eyes were hazy and mind could hardly function.

Instead of wasting time answering his blatantly stupid question, Lois went to work on his belt and then on the button standing between her and her goal. When his hand finally came to rest on her shoulder to pull her up, his pants dropped to the floor and pooled around his ankles.

"Lois?"

"No talking, Clark." Her tone was firm and he wanted to argue, he really did, but her cool fingers were tracing the skin under the strap of boxers and he soon lost his ability to breathe.

Down went the white boxers, revealing Clark junior in all his glory. He was semi erect already, but Lois was losing patience with the slow pace. She had been thinking about this since two nights ago. She scattered butterfly kisses on his inner thighs, while her hands gripped his narrow hips. Up and up and then at the tip of his growing erection.

"God…"

She caught the thick base in a fist and licked the moist tip once before pushing him into her mouth. Involuntarily, Clark's hand came to grip her hair and Lois smiled. She had him now right where she wanted him. With her tongue pressed to the underside of his bulge, she moved her mouth up and down his length. Swallowing him completely was hard, since he was quite a big boy, but she was determined to try.

Her head was bobbing up and down, the hand not gripping his base, working on his balls with firm squeezes. The pleasure was beyond anything Clark had ever experienced and his fear of intimacy was lost amid the fog clouding his mind as he used the hand gripping her hair to guide her glorious mouth in rhythm to the thrusts of his hips. His head fell backwards, hitting the door, his mouth fell open and he desperately tried muffling his moans, lest someone heard them and came to interrupt.

_That wouldn't do._

Not when her mouth was working up and down his length, her tongue following the movement with sensual licks. Warmth and tingles of pleasure were slowly but surely spreading through his body, making him weak and strong, warm and cold at the same time. It took Lois only a few minutes to get him close to that glorious edge he had never allowed himself to go before, but steady, he remained there; scared of falling.

That would mean losing control completely.

For years, he had been taught not to play with other children, his strength greater than an adult's since the tender age of three. Don't lose control, Clark. Don't hurt anyone. Always be careful and don't let anyone see you use your powers. The strength had been hard to deal with, but he had soon discovered it was not the only thing that made him different. And no rush at running faster than the eye could see or of jumping so high, he was almost flying could ever erase the devastating feeling of always being the odd one out.

As he got older, a new fear had manifested… that of being utterly alone. For how could he ever dare kiss a girl without chancing a bruise or broken bone? How could he ever let go enough of his tightly reigned in control to make love to a girl without killing her in the process? There were so many limitations; he would never be able to have a true relationship with a woman.

Until Lois Lane pressed against him and made him forget, for the briefest of seconds, why he was afraid to begin with. It had come naturally to him, which was strange since he wasn't all that fond of her most of the time.

"Stop thinking, Smallville. Just…" She licked him from top to bottom and then squeezed his base. "Let go." She swallowed him again and this time used her teeth to scrape his sensitive skin.

It felt so incredibly good and he wanted so much to let go, just this once that Clark willingly jumped off the edge. His hand gripped her hair and his hips involuntarily pushed forward, once, twice and one last time before he came. Lois deep throated him and milked him all the way to the peak of his orgasm to the calming motion of his penis.

When Clark finally managed to breathe again – quite a while later -, he raised his head from where it rested against the door and looked down at Lois still on her knees. A stab of fear of having possibly hurt her gripped his heart for only a millisecond. It dissipated as soon as he saw the satisfied smirk twisting her lips.

"Now, we're even." And just like that she was off her knees, a finger wiping the corner of her swollen lips.

Not sure how to feel, Clark made haste and redressed. As soon as he finished and just as he ran a hand through his hair to smooth it back in place, Lois opened the door to the janitor's closet and exited as if nothing at all had happened. He followed less naturally.

"Uh… Lois…" She turned to face him, seeming calm and indifferent. That grated on his nerves. This, after all, was not what he had in mind when he had promised to make it up to her.

"It's okay, Clark. You don't have to say anything. We're okay." She placed a reassuring hand on his chest and met his gaze head on, something she had been reluctant to do before. "And we can definitely put all this tension behind us."

A smile, a punch on the arm he made sure to flinch at, so she wouldn't bruise her hand and she was gone, bouncing out of sight, light as a feather.

It wasn't fair. She had left him completely floored and confused and feeling like the weight of a thousand boulders rested solely on his shoulders. He had been baffled since their first kiss, but he hadn't felt like this… What was it, this heavy pressure in his chest?

Clark didn't know.

Frowning, he rubbed his chest and glanced around; searching for answers the empty hallways of Smallville High were unprepared to give. It was frustrating, not knowing what name to assign this feeling. It was also something he never had trouble with before. He had felt like an outcast for being different. He had loved Lana since the age of five. Chloe was his best friend, nothing more and nothing less. He had been mad at his father for not allowing him to play sports. He enjoyed journalism more than he admitted to Chloe most of the time. And he had been annoyed at Lois since the start, because she talked too much and was always getting him into trouble.

These things he could understand, grasp and name. What he felt at that moment, alone and with adrenaline and endorphins still coursing his veins from the blow job Lois had given him, was a mystery. The only thing he was sure of was that he didn't like watching her walk away.

Not one bit.


	4. Part I Chapter 4

**PART I**** - Chapter 4**

* * *

Chloe sat in biology class, one of the few she shared with Lois, and tried to pretend to focus on the droning teacher and the creepy insects she was projecting onto the wall. Her real attention, however, was on her tall cousin, who sat two rows to the left. Ever since the strange scene she and Lana had witnessed, Chloe hadn't been able to think of anything else.

Lois and Clark.

She had seen the initial chemistry between them, of course. Had even worried about it for some time, taking incredible comfort in the way Clark seemed to avoid Lois like the plague most of the time. Now, though… Something had changed. She wasn't completely sure what that was exactly, but something was definitely different.

Talking to Lois and Clark separately had proven to be useless. Clark stammered and found an excuse to leave, while Lois rolled her eyes, smiled and said 'nothing'. Chloe was no fool, though. Their behavior screamed guilty and she was intent in uncovering this, whatever it was.

First, study the subjects.

_Lois. _

She had gone from fidgety to somber, to giddy in the span of only a few days. Knowing her cousin as she was sure she knew, Chloe had come to the conclusion that something had happened with Clark, which had left Lois incredibly self-conscious and unsure. In typical Lois behavior, she would have stewed for a few days, trying to convince herself that it was nothing and then, when that proved unsuccessful, she would confront Clark. That explained the saddened countenance; whatever Clark said or did left her hurt and even more unsure.

_And Clark._

Well, he, being the nice guy he was, would seek to make things better. That explained the scene in Main Street. Chloe wanted to know what happened afterwards to leave him so quiet. She had observed him in the past two days, sulking near Lois, as she consciously ignored him. His blue-green eyes were more intense than Chloe had ever seen them and his attention remained unwavering, even going so far as to completely ignore Lana.

The light came back on and many students shook their heads, coming awake after almost an hour of mindless slides. Teachers never learned that turning the lights off was always a bad idea. Chloe, for her part, ignored everything in favor of Lois, who was smiling, as she retrieved her bag.

She seemed happy…

No. That was the wrong word. Lois seemed pleased.

"Okay, couz. I have to see some sun light." Lois came over to her cousin and adjusted the pack on her shoulder. "This is an hour I will never get back. Stupid waste of time." She finished in mutters.

Chloe smiled, seeing the chance she needed to corner Lois into talking. "Sure!"

The short blonde waited patiently for them to reach a place a little less crowded before breaching the subject.

"So, I saw you and Clark arguing the other day near the Talon. Is everything okay?" Lois sobered the minute she mentioned Clark and simply shrugged at her cousin's seemingly innocent question. "Oh, c'mon. You and Clark are always arguing about something or another. It can't have been that bad."

Another shrug. "We just… had a difference of opinion."

Chloe rolled her eyes, though she made sure to hide it from her cousin. She didn't believe Lois dismissal for a single second. "What about?"

Uncomfortable shuffle and Chloe became even surer that the argument between them was the source of this mystery. She allowed Lois her silence, knowing her cousin needed time to process things when the subject was her personal life. A couple of minutes passed and they were nearing the entrance to the cafeteria, when Lois grabbed her by the arm and stopped their progress.

"Chlo. Hypothetically speaking… what would you do if Clark got himself a fling or even a girlfriend?" Lo was looking at her uncertainly, her bottom lips trapped between her worrying teeth. Chloe wasn't naïve enough to think her question was unrelated to the 'argument' she had been investigating.

The aspiring journalist had a ready, blasé answer at the tip of her tongue, when she realized the perfect opportunity Lois had unwittingly given her with her question. Chloe considered her answer carefully before opening her mouth to speak.

"Well, Clark and I are just friends. " Lois didn't seem particularly convinced. "And even with my slight crush on him, I don't hold any power over who he likes. I would be the supportive friend." Her valiant words didn't sound all that convincing, Chloe could silently admit, and weren't probably 100% true. Lois knew her too well.

The tall girl raised her eyebrow.

"Okay, okay. I would be hurt and let's face it, I would be hard pressed to like the girl." Chloe admitted. "Why do you ask anyway? This is the second time you asked me something like this relating to Clark." The short blonde fixedly stared at her cousin. "You know something."

Lois sighed and looked away.

"Chloe… you're friends with Lana and Clark's all head over heels in love with her. If… I don't know. If I had a fling with him, would you be able to forgive me?"

_Hypothetically speaking._

Chloe wanted to have heard that attached to the question, even if only implied. There was a truthfulness to her cousin's words, though, that made her realize why Lois seemed so unsure. Something had happened between Clark and her.

Chloe didn't know how to feel about that.

It wasn't completely unexpected, yet it railroaded her with surprising strength. Lois' moods and her odd questions and the argument she had witnessed all of a sudden made sense.

She took a step back, unaware of the look of betrayal written across her face. Lois didn't try to follow her as she stumbled backwards, then left. Chloe was grateful for that, at least. The last thing Chloe saw before turning the corner and sprinting back to the safety of her haven, the Torch, was her cousin's crestfallen face and the tears shimmering in her eyes.

xxxxx

Clark watched silently as Lois entered through the kitchen door, tears brimming her soulful eyes. The sight was so unusual, he was momentarily struck motionless. He had never seen Lois offer even the hint of a tear before. She was normally so strong and self assured. How was he supposed to react anyway?

"Uh… Lois?" He made no move to approach her, uncertain as a man thinking of petting a vicious lion in the wild. "Are you okay?"

Lois huffed, but remained otherwise silent, her gaze focused somewhere over his right shoulder. Of course she wasn't okay; Clark sighed. He shuffled his feet and took a half tentative step towards her, a hand poised to touch her shoulder comfortingly. He wasn't even near her yet, before she flinched away.

"Smallville…" She took deep breaths and willed the tears away, though Clark saw how hard that was becoming. "Clark." And finally, her eyes met his, full of uncertainty and turmoil and heartbreaking sadness. The dark haired boy could think of nothing but his own heart constricting and the need he felt to drive all her problems away.

"We can't do this anymore." He frowned. "I won't pretend we don't have some serious chemistry or that I am as much to blame for this mess as you are. But, we can't hurt the people we love on this… this… whatever this is between us. And we obviously can't be trusted alone together. So…"

"Lois…" He didn't really know what he wanted to say, there was only the certainty that he had to say something.

"No…" She shook her head. "No, we can't." She bit her lower lips. "I talked to the General and he's sending me to Germany to study. I already talked to your parents and all there's left to do is pack and tell…"

Clark was a man prone to long contemplative moments and deep emotions. He had loved the same woman since he could remember. He lived every second of his life worried about the secrets he couldn't let anyone know. He kept good grades. He respected his parents and lived to help his friends.

He was happy.

Most of the time. There were moments when he felt misunderstood and alone. Normal teenage stuff, though, even if his status as last of his alien kind meant he was unlikely to ever grow past that. Nevertheless, when he had kissed Lois, had touched her bare skin, there had been something else there besides lust. Something different and good and comforting and completely beyond his comprehension. Something he wanted explore. Not for others, but entirely for himself.

He couldn't do that if she left.

Clark straightened his back, feeling stronger and more in control. "Funny, I never thought you'd be a coward, running away at the first sign of trouble." His words came out more harsh and taunting than he had planned, true, but he felt no remorse afterwards.

If she could hurt him, he could hurt her, too.

"Dammit, Clark! Can't you see this is for the best?" A rosy flush colored her cheeks and her eyes were no longer misty. Anger shone there instead.

"Best? Best for who?" He crossed his arms and continued to glower at her lame attempt at an excuse.

Lois sighed. "Don't you want things as they were? Don't you want your bed back and your life normal and me gone as far away as possible?" All too quickly, her anger and fierceness evaporated and Clark saw her as she was: insecure and lost. Just like him.

A step closer, then another, his arms dropped to the side and their eyes met, electric current jumping between them. So many times had he looked at her, seen her with her hair up and down, dressed with his shirt, with pj's and every day wear. Seen her laugh and scowl and roll her eyes. Yet, now, her face soft and open, their bodies too close and not close enough, Clark saw Lois Lane for the first time.

And what he saw took his breath away.

"I don't want you gone."

Lips parted to speak, to object, to sigh… They had no chance to reveal their intent, for Clark's lips crashed against them, sweet and yet demanding. And while she should have fought against it, Lois whole heartily gave herself away to the feelings he managed to evoke from her body. Arms came up to circle his neck and tongues came into play.

Although this should have felt like goodbye – was, in fact, aching separation – Clark couldn't help but think it felt like coming home.

No more holding back.

One minute she was trying to say goodbye and the next, Lois couldn't tell up from drown.

And though she knew her lips shouldn't be anywhere near his, Lois could not gather enough strength to pull away. Not this time, the very last. It was improbable that their lives would ever cross again in the future. It was with that certainty, which put such painful pressure within her chest, that Lois molded her body against Clark's and let go.

Tomorrow she would worry about Chloe and the earful the General was bound to give her. Tomorrow she would face Martha and Jonathan Kent, people she respected and loved, and see the hurt her sudden departure would cause. Today was for the heavenly emotions and Clark Kent… her Smallville.

Clark had her body pliant against his, big hands holding her hips close to the growing part of his anatomy. Sensual and hard, his tongue teased and dared hers. There was no room for thought, as her own hands played with the muscles of his back, squeezing and anchoring herself to him.

This was so much more powerful than their last encounters.

"Clark…" Lois was breathless. Clark, though, could go a long time without air and was too busy kissing the spot behind her ear and blowing over the moist skin, which made Lois shiver delightfully and melt even further into him.

It felt wonderful to know that strong, independent Lois Lane trusted him enough to give herself completely, no holding back.

Kissing, though, wasn't enough. Not anymore.

Lois felt her feet stumble backwards, as Clark half carried her to nearest wall. His strong arms seemed to deal with her weight easily, as if she weighted no more than a feather and the power of it sent further chills up and down her spine.

Who knew shy Clark could be so assertive?

She sighed when his body pressed hers against the cool wall, his lips kissing and sucking her neck hard enough to leave a mark. Down he went with those luscious and sinful lips of his to the curve of her t-shirt, teasing the exposed flesh of her chest. His strong hands were holding her by the ribs and bending her backwards to give his taller frame better access, while his thumbs drew circles under her breasts.

Moans and sighs.

Faster than Lois could blink, her t-shirt disappeared. Clark's hungry gaze swept over her newly bared skin and licked his lips, making her shudder with anticipation. Lois wanted him so much, it made breathing hard.

"Smallvill…" He captured her bottom lip between his teeth and grinned. Feeling her knees wobbly, she hugged his broad shoulders and pulled him forward. She needed more, more, more.

Lois felt his hands on her back. Soon, her bra fell to the floor and she was left exposed to Clark's eager and skilled mouth. He drew circles with his lips and tongue around the milky flesh surrounding her aureole, all the while avoiding the darker skin of her nipple, already straining for attention. He did the same thing to her other breast, until she was so breathless and so desperate for release, that she gripped his hair and demanded he finish what he started.

When his mouth closed around her taunted flesh, a shudder ran over every inch of her body and her eyes involuntarily closed. With a quiet thud, her head fell backwards in ecstasy. Sucking, kneading and liking, Clark soon had her panting and moaning with pleasure. It was a great surprise to discover his own satisfaction at the sounds he managed to make her mouth produce. He continued torturing her, as his hands made haste to rid her of the jeans she wore. Wearing only normal, white cotton panties and leaning against the wall, Lois looked good enough to eat.

She swallowed, trying to catch her breath and slowly looked at him from head to toe. "You're wearing too many clothes, Smallville."

Lois felt his weight pushing her against the wall again, a second before his lips crashed onto hers, ruthless and unyielding. Her hands managed to push the white t-shirt he wore over his hard abs and off his shoulders in no time. A sigh left her as the skin of his strong, delectable chest pressed against her firm nipples, no barriers between them. Leisurely, Lois traced the hard planes of his chest and back, loving the way the muscles beneath her fingertips contracted.

Another long kiss followed.

_This was haven. _

She ran her fingertips over his shoulder and down his sides, hands meeting over the trail of hair leading to his still hidden penis. Lois had experience, though not as much as one might had credited her with, but she could safely say there had never been consuming want within her as the one she felt with Clark at this delirious moment. She wanted to touch him everywhere, no hesitation; she wanted him as melted as she felt.

The button to his jeans popped. She tried to grasp his girth with her hands, but the size of him had put too much a strain on the rough material of his pants and she found there was no room to maneuver.

That wouldn't do.

Breaking the kiss, though their heads remained but from an inch of distance from each other, Lois told him to strip, at the same time she was pushing the jeans down. Clark complied quickly, half stumbling, half hopping to rid himself of it.

"The boxers, too, Clarkie." Lois was smiling, amused, and leering. His strong chest revealed every single muscle there was, bulging with his every move. He was like a Greek statue and she liked what she saw.

Naked and very much at attention, Clark slowly stepped forward, until there was no room left between them. Lois' smirk disappeared, as she moaned his name.

"I want you." His lips whispered against her own. "So much, I can't even explain."

"I want you, too. But, Clark…", she stared at him somberly. "I'm still leaving."

The farmboy didn't say anything. He didn't smile or frown. There were words swimming in his eyes she could almost understand and they both comforted and scared her with their intensity. She didn't want to think, though. She wanted to feel and, for just a second, let go and believe everything would turn out okay.

"Clark…"

Slowly, he pressed her more firmly against the wall and bend down to catch one of her thighs in his hand. Achingly slow, he brought it up, the skin of her inner thighs brushing sensually against his. Then, with no help from Lois, he lifted her body clear off the floor. With her legs pending from either side of his body and her warm center pressed against his throbbing manhood, only the flimsy material of her panties between their sensitive skin, Lois felt so near to complete ecstasy that she forgot to breathe. Her eyes slid closed and her arms anchored themselves on his shoulders, as she wrapped her legs around him.

Clark just stood there, though, teasing.

"Pl… please…" she begged.

With his weight, he supported hers against the wall, while his hands were left free to caress, with ghostly touches, the skin of her arms. Goosebumps appeared where his fingers trekked, shudders soon following. He then entwined his fingers with hers, where they rested behind his neck. Pulling them away, Clark pushed them towards the wall and unhurriedly raised them, until he had them pinned over her head. Lois did nothing to fight this, enjoying the way Clark was taking the lead. Their bodies impossibly close, she watched his face, her lips parted, anxious to see what would happen next.

Effortlessly keeping her hands up with only one of his, Clark used his spare hand to trail the skin of her arm, torso and belly, until he reached her alluring hips. Her breath hitched when he squeezed the round flesh there. His eyes were dark and a little bit dangerous in a way Lois had never seen them. She wasn't afraid, though; there was an incredible safeness to be felt in his arms.

And a sense of belonging.

For a long moment, Clark held them both like that, unmoving and teasing. The tension was great and increased exponentially with every second they remained quiet. Not wanting to think about all the reasons this shouldn't be happening, Lois arched her back, increasing the friction her body was imposing upon his and demanding he stop stalling. She needed him inside her.

Clark merely smirked, exerting the smallest of movement between their lower bodies.

"I never thought you had such a naughty side, Clark." In response, he teased her swollen lips and bunched her panties in a fist. His gesture was clear and Lois raised an eyebrow, daring him to go through with it.

The Clark she knew would have blushed and looked away. This new, daring and irresistible Clark did no such thing. Tightening his grip on the soft material of the only piece of clothing still standing between them, he easily ripped it and pulled it away. Lois gasped. A moment of adjustment was all it took and the pulsing hot skin of his penis found her nether lips.

They both moaned in pleasure.

"God… I…"

And all of a sudden, Clark lost his sureness and gulped. "Lois… I don't want to hu… hurt you." Their positions and his hesitancy were so opposite that it bordered on ridiculous and under normal circumstances, Lois might have laughed. The tightly wound pressure building within her, though, was no laughing matter.

"Clark, don't you dare stop now…" Seething and begging at the same time in a sentence that was almost a growl, Lois moved her hips in circles, increasing the intimate pressure between them.

It was Clark's turn to growl.

"Lois… stop mov…" Lois lunged forward and captured his lips in a searing and demanding kiss, while continuing her torturous moves down bellow.

There was only so much a man could take and Lois was certainly crossing all boundaries. Taking back control, Clark gripped her hip to keep it still and forced her arms to stretch even higher against the wall. She bit her lip in anticipation, hazy eyes watching his beautiful face.

Up and down, he rubbed his manhood on her already wet outer lips. Lois mewled in pleasure. Satisfied by the regained control, he finally bent his knees and positioned himself at her entrance. A little pressure and his tip was inside her, making her gasp. With wicked and deliberate slowness, he unbent his knees and pushed upwards, until he was completely sheathed within her tight walls.

Both their panting breaths mingled.

"God, you're…" She moved her hips a little, trying to adjust to his girth. It only helped increase the friction, though, and Clark dropped his forehead to rest on hers, his ability to think slipping. "…so… big."

"Don't move yet, Lo. I need a second." Lois didn't seem to hear him and if she did, she ignored his plea. Desperate to distract her before she managed to drive him over the edge too soon, Clark kissed her again, unhurried open mouthed kisses, Lois readily responded to.

It helped, yet didn't at the same time.

When he finally felt secure in his ability to last more than two seconds – an embarrassment to any man, even if it was his first time -, Clark broke the kiss and met Lois hazy eyes. She looked beautiful. And in that precious moment, she was his.

Keeping their bodies firmly pressed together, he started moving up and down, Lois keeping pace with his every move, between pants and moans. It was a feeling so much more amazing than he could ever have imagined and it felt right. It felt perfect.

The dance between them stretched on as if time itself stopped having meaning. Their skins became damp with sweat and warm with lust and still they moved together, prolonging each other's pleasure until it was almost pain. Pain that felt so wonderful one could only wish it to last forever and yet, climbling up the hill of extasy was the knowledge that there was a higher point to be achieved.

So near.

"Clark... I... I'm... almost..." And the tempo that had been steady and slow, suddenly increased and lost its rhythm. Clark had been trying to keep his body in check, ever conscious that his hands could break bones and his eyes could burn skin. He couldn't hold it back anymore, though. This felt so right, so uncomplicated, that the possibility he might hurt her somehow seemed utterly impossible.

Letting go is a sign of trust and he suddenly trusted himself.

With her.

Clark let go of her hands, still trapped over her head and grabbed her hips with both of his hands so to keep their bodies as close as humanly possible. Lois was lost in waves of unbelievable pleasure and instictively cirlced her arms around his neck, gripping the slippery muscles of his broad back for support.

Their new, adjusted and anchored positions allowed Clark to hit the most sensitive spot within her, increasing her pleasure tenfold. Suddenly, there was no more climbing to be done; Lois was there.

Her lover's name escaped her breathless lips, as her body shuddered uncontrollably as wave after wave of pleasure crashed into her. The orgasm seemed to stretched into infinity and, by the time her heart beat calmed down its wild rhythm, Lois was feeling considerably tired and pleasurably weightless. It was only as Clark shifted, that she realized he was still very much hard within her.

"God, Clark…"

A dreaded second of deja vu assaulted her, but she was too delightfully numb to tense up or get angry. So, she did the only thing she could possibly think of doing at that time – which wasn't all that much. Holding him close with exhausted arms, she brought her lips to his and whispered against them.

"It's okay, Clark." Arching her back, she bit his lower lip. "Come for me now..."

He wasn't sure if it was the sensual words breathed into his swollen lips or her total surrender, but the tall man stole a sering kiss and pushed once, twice and a final time, before exploding. Back straight and tense, he experienced an orgasm more powerful than any he had ever had including the one in the janitor's closet some days before.

It was completion and perfection and like coming home after a long absense.

For a stretch of time neither would ever be able to count, they remained there on the wall, their bodies intimately entwined. Hearts and lungs slowly regained their ability to funtion properly and their skin cooled. And, what should have been an awkward moment following an impulsive act turned out to be nothing but bliss.

"That was... amazing." Clark grinned and then turned sober. "You do realize now you won't be able to leave."

"Why the hell not?" Her retort was automatic and involved no thought; leaving had been throughly banished from her mind. Years of automatically disobeying orders had become instinct, though.

"Coz I don't want you to." There he went with those big soulful eyes she couldn't resist, even if admiting so would figure only as the last item on her list, bellow being dismembered alive and living with the General again. How could she think of leaving when he looked at her like that, their bodies still intimately pressed.

Still.

"Smallville...this... as wonderful as this was, I can't. We can't." Lois dropped her legs from around his waist and separated their bodies. Clark didn't loosen his grip on her waist, though.

"Why not?"

"Because... it's too complicated. Your parents, Chloe... Lana!" She had hoped that dropping his long lost love's name would make him see reason. Clark, however, didn't have the decency to flinch and only tightened his grip on her.

"My parents love you, Lana is the past and a complete non-factor and Chloe is your cousin. I'm sure she'll be happy as long as you're happy." He seemed so sincere, yet completely naïve.

"No she won't, Clark. It just… it's not that simple." Hugging him close, their bodies molding perfectly, Lois allowed herself one last moment. "Just… let me go. Please?"

Her request was so emotional and so contradictory. Clark couldn't understand how she could be asking him to allow her to leave, when her body held him so close, begging him to never let go. And the truth of the matter was that he didn't want to let go. Ever. So he enclosed his arms around her waist and brought her even closer.

"Don't ask me that, Lo."

And she didn't. Not with words. Almost reluctantly, Lois pulled away. Avoiding his gaze, less he see the tears threatening to fall from her treacherous eyes, she gathered her clothes. Like a gentleman she knew he was, Clark turned away, allowing her some privacy and busied himself with his own clothes. He too was desperately trying to hold tears at bay.

His heart was silently being torn apart.

Gently, Lois leaned sideways on his shoulder, conveying words she couldn't even begin to speak. Then, she was gone, the screen door hitting the frame and echoing much louder than Clark had ever heard it. Her sudden absence hit him with such physical pain, creating a void in his chest and weakening his knees. He could do nothing but sob.

How could things change so fast, he wondered.

Clark would have never guessed Lois would be the one to fill his heart and then take it away.

xxxxxxx

Jonathan Kent was a simple man.

He worked hard, loved fiercely and worried 24/7. Maybe not so simple in that last instance. He was a man who believed in protecting his family and his son Clark needed it more than most. He had been so worried with keeping the secret and his son physically safe, though, that emotional pain was considered secondary. Until he walked into his home and found his son on his knees in the middle of the living room, clutching his head and sobbing so heart-breakingly.

"Clark?" Jonathan rushed to his side, Martha following after. "Son, what's wrong?"

"It hurts, dad. Like I'm breaking from the inside out." Clark pounded his own chest, "how can I fix this? I can't… I can't breathe."

"What happened, Clark?"

"Oh, my boy. Jonathan, what's wrong with him?" Martha was hugging her son's back, trying to imprint comfort and knowing it wasn't enough. Nothing that Clark said made sense to them.

"I don't know, Martha. I don't know."

xxxxx

Chloe spent exactly two days getting over the feeling of betrayal Lois' revelation had sprung within her chest and an additional day of avoiding both her and Clark to realize she had no claim to this feeling. Whatever had happened between her cousin and her best friend, it had nothing to do with her. It hadn't been done to hurt her and she had no right to be angry – even if logic didn't always translate to reality as well as one might wish it to.

Be it fling or serious, Chloe had decided then, that having Clark in her life as a friend was more important than her one sided crush and that Lois was the closest and most loyal family she had ever had and that losing her to this would be the worst mistake she could ever make.

Life waits for no one, though.

By the time Chloe came to peace with her decision, it was already too late. Clark was a shell of the man she had known, pale and almost unresponsive. And Lois…Lois was gone to Germany, the only trace of her presence in Smallville, a letter in her locker at school.

Sitting alone in the Torch, scraps of newspaper her only companion, Chloe clutched the still unread letter to her chest. The four walls that had become her domain and her sanctuary were making her feel, that day, even more bare inside. Hesitant to read what her cousin had to say, but needing to read the words, Chloe opened the envelope and unfolded the single sheet of hand written paper.

_Chloe,_

_I'm sorry I can't be brave enough to say these words to your face. I'm sorry I left without saying goodbye. I'm sorry for making things harder for you. I'm sorry for ever making you doubt how important you are to me. I'm sorry saying sorry isn't enough._

_What happened between Clark and I was unexpected and unplanned and I can safely say caught me a much by surprise as it did him. That's no excuse though. We hurt you with our actions, even when you were unaware of it and that is not okay .For that I'm sorry. Leaving is my way to try and make it better. It's also the only way I can be sure I won't hurt you like this again. I hope someday you can find it in your heart to forgive me._

_I want you to know, Chlo, that I love you more than anything else in the world and that I will always be here when you need me. If you are too angry now, that's okay, but know that always. _

_I love you._

_Lois_

Between apologies and spelling mistakes that were quintessentially Lois, Chloe cried harder. She didn't want Lois gone and she only realized it too late to matter.

It was all such a mess.

What was she supposed to do now?

xxxxxxxxx

Jonathan came in to the house from the kitchen door, a tired look on his face. He accepted the warm cup of tea his wife offered and sat with her on the counter. Martha's face was clear to read and he knew there would be no answers to the questions lurking there, unsaid. Sigh.

It was a horrible thing for a parent to do, watch their kids suffering without knowing how to make it all better.

"Jonathan?"

"He won't talk, sweetheart. He is doing his chores and fixing absolutely everything that could possibly need fixing around the farm. But he won't stop and he won't say anything." Martha's warm hand came to rest onto his and it was a lifeline he truly appreciated; no one could make him feel better like his wife could.

"And Lois? Did he say anything about her leaving so suddenly?"

"No."

Martha's brow furrowed. "Jonathan, you don't think Lois leaving and Clark's mood is related, do you?"

He frowned as well, going over in his head every interaction he could remember between the two teens. Despite their constant bickering, he had been worried at first that a woman and a man living under the same roof could cause only problems. But Clark treated her indifferently and Lois seemed to show his son no particular mind. Had he been wrong?

"I don't know. Do you have a reason to suspect it, Martha?"

She shrugged. "I can't say there is something in particular. But, there was something strange going on between them some days before Lois left and I think it's a bit of a big coincidence that Lois leaving happened on the same day Clark had his breakdown." Looking into her husband's clear blue eyes, she wondered. "We are missing some pieces here, Jonathan."

He only nodded in agreement.

"Perhaps, we could talk to Chloe. Lois is her cousin, after all. Maybe she knows more than we do."

Except, Chloe wouldn't say anything to incriminate her cousin or put Clark in a bad place and the Kents were left only with questions and speculations and a son who had thrown himself completely into the search for Jor-El's stones.


	5. Part II Chapter 1

Beginning of the second part, including a second chapter for those who can't wait for more. Thank you all who reviewed and for the messages asking for more.

Enjoy!

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**PART I****I

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Chapter 1

She could feel him, muscular chest pressed so intimately against her back, while his hands caused fires to burst upon the skin they touched. Warm breath and wet kisses marked the skin on the base of her neck and made her shiver. His manhood was large and teasing, as it caressed the folds of her labia from behind. There was no telling how long she would be able to withstand this torture, without taking control. She liked it, though. The way he was strong and domineering, taking the choices completely out of her hands.

There was nothing like the feeling of surrendering.

Lois couldn't see his face – didn't really need to – and the room around her was a mystery she was in no hurry to explore. There was only him and the tall, clear pillar of crystal ice he had her pressed against. The air was filled with their moans of pleasure.

"Please…"

His arms came to rest onto hers, holding her right one over her head and her left one around the pillar. His larger fingers easily covered her hands. Their bodies fit perfectly, like two pieces of the same puzzle and it only took one small movement to connect them fully. For a second, Lois forgot to breathe.

Up and down they moved, in perfect, achingly slow synchrony, their sweaty skins sliding against each other sensually. The surface of the ice pillar was neither rough nor cold and Lois felt her body sliding against it as well, with every delicious thrust of her companion. Her nipples were sensitive and shot tingles of pleasure along the way.

She was trapped and utterly at his mercy.

Long were the moments they spent like that, leisurely taking and giving pleasure. The ecstasy didn't crest enough to drive them over the edge, but the lusciously unhurried pace made the experience a memorable one. Up and down, skin on skin, endless and wonderful.

"God…"

There is always a moment where the prolonged tension becomes too much and a different pace is set. Lois reached that moment and started thrusting back, causing new friction and new pleasure. Not to be outdone, her lover dragged her arm from around the pillar and used her own fingers to caress the curve of her breasts, her stomach and her hip. She felt like a puppet and was loving the sensations that brought.

His thick fingers guided her slender ones to her inner thigh, then upwards, until they touched the bundle of nerves between her legs. Sensual circles were drown, his and hers fingers working together on a delectable rhythm that was driving her wild.

So close now. So, very, very close.

"Please, please, please… I need…"

It was blabbering and begging – things she simply didn't do -, but Lois was past the point of no return. Harder, she felt her fingers press upon her clit and his girth driving into her. It was frenetic and sluggish at the same time, until there was no higher place to climb. In a burst of multicolored lights and wave upon wave of bliss all at once; a true feeling of nirvana.

Her lover wasn't far behind, his weight increasing the pressure between her and the pillar, as he collapsed. It was perfect in a timeless sense.

_Eternal._

If only light didn't pour so forcibly through the curtains and woke her up from sleep.

Groaning, Lois burrowed her head under the pillow, desperate to return to her dream and escape the rays of reality trying to ruin her peace. Every night it was the same dream. Granted, it was in different positions and different places, with varied lengths of time. But it was the same man and the same situation, in a manner so real, the torment of the memories managed to haunt even her waking hours.

Tossing the pillow away and the covers down, Lois huffed and gave up trying to return to slumber. Two months had never crawled by so slowly.

And the ache in her chest, a void she seemed unable to fill, remained ever present. Time and distance hadn't managed to diminish its intensity. Lois couldn't understand how the farmboy had done it, stolen her heart and branded her soul, but she couldn't deny it anymore.

She was deeply in love with Clark Kent.

He wasn't hers to have, though. No amount of tears and NC-17 rated dreams would change that and Lois frequently found anger boiling within, mostly directed at herself. How could she have allowed this to happen?

"Stupid, Lane. Idiotic." She dragged her heavy body to the bathroom and turned the shower on, the nearly scalding water unable to erase the feeling of Clark's fingers on her skin.

Chloe hadn't called or written a single word and that frustrated her too. A boy should never have been able to come between them. She had really done it, screwed everything up, and managed to push everyone she loved away. So, besides the Clark sized void in her chest, there was also the feeling of loneliness she hadn't been able to shake since stepping foot on Frankfurt.

_It was just her now._

Lois reluctantly stepped out of the shower when the water started to cool and dried herself off. Hair still damp, she watched her figure in the full length mirror hanging on her bedroom wall, a habit she had picked up after returning to Europe.

First, there was the way her muscles seemed leaner and stronger than ever. True that she had been running daily and killing endless hours training various forms of combat to try and dispel some of her sexual frustration. Then, there was her hair. She had attempted to die it countless of times, with no success. The natural, chocolately color she had sacrificed at 14 had returned of its own accord and refused to leave.

Nothing was as puzzling as the tattoo on her back, though.

Hazy were the memories of the first hours in Germany, after she had entered the nearest bar and drank herself into a stupor. Wasn't it lovely that the age limit was 18 in most countries? Nothing on those flashes, however, explained the black inked tattoo on the lower region of her back, a strangely familiar symbol she hadn't been able to identify.

She liked it, though. Took comfort in it, for no other reason than that it reminded her of Smallville – man and town.

Sighing, Lois abandoned her perusal and got ready for her day. Five weeks left and she would be off to the Oxford University in London and hopefully a new phase of her life.

_Alone._

_xxxxxxxxx_

The sheets beneath his fingers weren't as silky as the ones on the white bed that had figured so prominently in his dreams the night before and they were enough to wake him completely. No surprise there. As an automaton, Clark rose, got dressed and took care of the morning chores in super speed. Like every single day, he finished his morning routine with a cold shower.

Hot water reminded him too much of Lois and it wasn't like he was particularly affected by such low temperatures.

_Unfortunately._

Breakfast and off he went to school, images of the night before still fresh in his mind. There would never be a moment, he was sure, when he would ever manage to forget the feeling of her body intimately pressed against his. He didn't want to forget it; memories were all he had now.

_Lois was gone._

Gone from his life and his arms, because she had believed Chloe would have been angry. Gone, because she hadn't wanted to allow herself to fall for him. Stupid, simple, meek Clark Kent. Clark had never wanted someone to know his secret as much as her. So she would see him as strong and able and worthy of her.

Talk about inversion of personality.

Years dreaming of normal and the girl next door, only to fall head over heels in love with an army brat, with a penchant for trouble and a love for danger. God certainly worked in mysterious ways. Clark shook his head; too late to do anything about that now. His love for Lois was sudden and much too deep to erase and the pain of her absence still constricted his chest every day with the same intensity as the day she had left.

_Lasting._

Clark climbed the steps to Smallville High, a sigh trapped between his lips, and prepared himself for another long, boring and utterly pain-filled days. Lois would never have stood for such depressing behavior and he sometimes could hear her scolding him somewhere over his shoulder. Sometimes, the sound of her voice would make him laugh.

_Sometimes._

Lois wasn't there to scold him, though, and that only served to make him brooding session longer and more pronounced.

"Hey, Clark." He turned, unenthusiastically and found Lana leaning against the locker next to his. Clark still had a hard time believing the mere sight of her didn't make butterflies take flight within his stomach. Her voice, her eyes… they did nothing else to his stomach or his heart. Never, would he have believed it possible.

"Lana."

"You've been so down lately, Clark. Are you okay?" She tilted her head and seemed perfectly innocent and caring. Clark saw her only as being nosy.

_Why did everyone insist on asking him that?_

"As fine as I was yesterday, Lana", which was strictly true.

Lana Lang watched Clark's tall frame walk towards class, a depressed aura about him. If he had been a cartoon, Lana pondered, a dark cloud would have been hanging over his head. She sighed. Clark's complete lack of attention was starting to grate on her nerves. He had always been there and even when her heart was set on someone else, there had been great comfort in knowing Clark had and would always love her unconditionally.

_When had that changed?_

Her relationship with Jason was going well, despite his dismissal from school and the slight argument they had about his mother. She should feel happy and content, really. But Clark's attitude bothered deeply and Chloe's lack of comment smelled extremely suspicious. They were all hiding something from her and she deserved to know!

Suppressing the need to stomp her foot like she had done when she had been younger and didn't get her way, Lana breathed in deeply, adjusted her hair and went to class. Geometry and English seemed so pointless lately. She felt strangely older than her years and still being trapped in high school made it all the more constricting.

Shouldn't she have been done by now?

Another discontented sigh and off she was.

xxxxxxxxxx

Chloe had just finished with the latest edition of the Torch. With few reporters available among the students and her estrangement with Clark, Chloe had had to run against the clock to finish this edition. Too many hours and too much coffee, but she was finally done.

With the lull that came after a job done and the night descending, Chloe hadn't been able to avoid the thoughts of the past few weeks from plaguing her mind. The shadows clinging to the walls of the Torch office only served to remind her how alone she truly was. She had been hurt by Lois' revelation and then she had been angry and now she was simply empty. Chloe wanted to talk to Lois and wanted Clark back to his old self.

_Sounded so simple to accomplish._

With the blank e-mail window open and Lois' e-mail address staring tauntingly back at her, Chloe wondered if it wasn't, though. Simple. Lois wouldn't have left that letter if she hadn't meant it. All she had to do was take the first step. But the words wouldn't come; Chloe had no idea what to say.

Sighing, she placed her hands over the keyboard and wrote the first thing that came to mind. And then, promptly erased it. Twice she tried it and twice she hit the backspace button. Chloe felt like a coward. It was a horrible feeling to carry around. Gathering the courage she had always been proud to claim as her own, she typed out a simple, direct and short message, pressing the sent button before she could second guess herself.

_Lois,_

_I'm sorry I made you feel you couldn't come_

_to me with this.__ I'm sorry for ruining it for you._

_Clark is broody and won't talk to anyone._

_And I miss you. Very much._

_Can you forgive me?_

_Chloe _

It wasn't much and it didn't even begin to scratch the surface of what she wanted to say. It seemed enough, though. A good place to start. Basic rule of journalism: _**it doesn't have to fancy, it doesn't have to be poetic. It just has to get the message across as clear as possible.**_

The petit blonde finally felt a smile blossoming upon her lips. Everything was going to be just fine. She could feel it.

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Reviews, please!


	6. Part II Chapter 2

**PART II

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**

Chapter 2

Something cool and smooth supported his legs, as he sat. Around him, there was only white and though he couldn't particularly feel it – even naked as the day he landed on Earth -, Clark knew the air stood cold. It was a place both strange and familiar; he was safe here. He was also, most definitely, not alone.

Lois stood not two feet from him, her beautiful body encased in a flowing pale blue dress, unlike anything he had ever seen her wear. Her hair was darker and her lips parted, as she slowly allowed the strap to fall off her left shoulder.

He had been to this strange place before and had met his elusive lover in passionate, most inventive ways more times than he could count since Lois had left. Clark knew it was only a dream, but he couldn't help being comforted by it. It felt so real.

"Clark…" For this moment, it was real.

The dress dropped another strap and the silky material was barely hanging in place by the generous mounds on Lois' chest. Already surrendered to the creations of his unconscious mind, Clark wanted to stand up and help the garment on its descent. Moving was beyond him, unfortunately. Tantalizing torture was the endless amount of seconds it took Lois to step forward, urging the dress to pool around her ankles.

She was close enough to touch, if he could only will his hands to move.

Closer still she came, fingertips drawing paths upon the muscles of his thighs and proving he could indeed move, though that movement remained restricted to lower portions of his anatomy. He groaned and Lois smiled. She always smiled, delighted at the power she held over him.

Her lips descended to his shoulder, parts of her warm body touching his. She pressed closer, arms now using his thighs as support, while she teased his lips and rubbed her ample breasts against his sensitive chest. His erection, large and very much ready, relished the contact with her taunt belly, but demanded more.

As if released from invisible restraints, his arms snaked between the space her arms created with her body, his hands grabbed her hips and his mouth claimed hers. Without effort, he adjusted her body to better fit against his and sat her right where he needed her the most.

Lois moaned.

One sure thrust and he was encased within her, hot walls embracing his manhood and welcoming him home. Mind clouded with pleasure, Lois threw her head back and allowed his strong arms to support her whole weight. Clark smiled at the new open position, which allowed him access to the raised peaks of her breasts he had so wanted to touch before. A shudder went through her body as his mouth closed in around it.

And they moved.

Slow, sensuous and completely synchronized thrusts of two bodies accustomed to moving together. Skin that glistened with the sweat of perspiration common to strenuous exercise. Moans that echoed on bare, crystal walls. On and on, until pleasure and exhaustion battled for supremacy.

"Smallville… I need…"

Thumb on sensitive clit and lips around sweat glistened nipples and the orgasm Lois had been chasing for time undetermined finally arrived, wracking her body in powerful spasms and rendering her barely conscious. Clark followed her with abandon, hugging her body close to his as shudders of his own overpowered him.

It seemed only natural to slip into unconsciousness after that mind-blowing completion to their love making. What felt eerie and wrong, was waking up alone in his bed at the farm, wet sheets clinging to his bare chest and his arms empty.

Sigh.

Clark fell back onto the bed, eyes fixed upon the familiar ceiling. He both hated and loved these dreams. Their realness helped chase a little of the yearning Lois' absence produced, but were cruel under morning light, when his arms found themselves bare. Lois had ignored his attempts at contact and he was trying to respect her wish to remain apart by not running all the way to Germany and sweeping her into his arms before she could blink.

Going to get would mean nothing if she didn't wish to come, though, and wishing otherwise remained for dreams and flights of fancy.

He wasn't sure if he could continue like this for much longer.

Specially after he managed to find the three stones of power, presently, his only distraction.

xxxxxxxxxxx

There was something about depression of 29 and Lois wanted to pay attention, she really did. The monotonic droning of the teacher's sleep inducing voice made it impossible, though. Chin on hand and elbow on the desk, she tried, valiantly, to keep her eyes open.

And failed.

Flashes of naked skin and blue green eyes assaulted the dark of her closed eyelids. Images she saw every night in incredibly vivid dreams that always left her feeling satisfied and frustrated at the same time. That she was horny, Lois could understand. Hormones, biology and abstinence; she'd been there before. There had never been anything like this before, though. Constant yearning and a pull towards Kansas and a certain farmboy she had thus far been able to suppress. Barely.

Except for the erotic dreams, of course.

When dreams and flights of fancy became more real than reality itself, you could be sure the cosmos weren't properly aligned.

The bell rang and a long sigh escaped her lips. For a second, she stayed as she was, head propped and eyes semi closed, watching the teacher let loose a sigh of his own, shoulders slumping in defeat. It was obvious he was aware that his only captive audience was the black board at his back.

"Lois?"

She dropped her hand and turned her head to see who had called her name. It was a tall boy, blonde and with a crew cut belaying his status as an army brat who would surely be following in his father's footsteps. There were a lot of those in this school; sons and daughters of the men and women working at the nearby base.

"Simon."

"So. I was wondering if you already have a date for prom?"

_Huh._

He was handsome and tall and she normally would have been very interested. Normal was so far away, though, she didn't even remember what it looked like. This new Lois felt nothing but annoyance. Which was annoying in itself. No, she didn't want to go to prom with some generic soldier. No, she didn't want to be here, at all.

"Look, Simon. I'm…" Let him down easy, Lo. "I'm not really going to prom. So…"

He nodded, accepting the brush off gracefully, offered a small smile and left her all alone, sitting on a classroom as empty as her enthusiasm for it. Lois suppressed the impulse to sigh again.

"Not going to prom? May I ask why?" Her eyes shot up.

The teacher, a bit disheveled and wearing glasses that seemed to perpetually slip down his nose, was casting shy glances her way and shuffling a mountain of endlessly messy papers. He was tall and had dark brown hair and blue eyes and Lois was suddenly reminded of Clark Kent, minus the glasses.

_Was everything a reminder? _

"I'm already stuck repeating high-school. I'm really not in the mood to repeat that particular disaster." She shrugged. "Besides… If I were to go to prom…"

"It wouldn't be here."

Lois glanced up, startled by the teacher's spot on guess. Was she that transparent? At the question clearly etched upon her face, the teacher smiled and shut his briefcase, hiding the chaos within.

"I see a lot of people uninterested in class and school. A lot that want it over already, so life can really start. You…" He met her eyes directly for the first time. "You seem a thousand miles away, living a different life. Maybe even one you had and, for some reason, lost."

He had her completely pegged and Lois found herself confiding in him.

"I screwed up and had to leave." Lois bit her lower lips. "I always have to leave."

"Perhaps." He pushed the dark rimmed glasses up his narrow nose and smoothed out his perpetually wrinkled tie. He looked wise and geeky at the same time. "But... Just because we leave, doesn't mean we can't go back."

And with those words, he left the classroom.

A man who couldn't tie his tie properly and who needed new glasses. A teacher no one paid attention to and who was always dismissed as inconsequential. Someone whose name Lois couldn't even remember. He saw right through her walls and insecurities, delving into her inner most desire.

To go back.

To believe Chloe would forgive her and move on. To see Martha and Jonathan Kent again, a family she almost felt a part of. And, above all. To see Clark Kent and hold him until both their arms felt too heavy and tired to hold on anymore.

God, when had she turned into one of those mushy, head over heels in love teenagers, who couldn't function properly alone?

Pathetic.

_Sigh._

And yet she couldn't help it.

Stupid Clark Kent...


	7. Part II Chapter 3

**PART ****II**

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Chapter 3

Clark stood on a stark column of light, a plane of existence separate from the reality he knew. There was only one entrance and that was through the Kawatche cave walls, near Miller's Bend. His skin always burned a little when within this world and the fierce wind seemed almost repellant in its intensity. Still, he continued to come, submitting himself to Jor-El, so he could learn to hone his skills. He needed to find those stones and Clark remained sure this was the way to go.

It was an excuse, of course.

He had never been particularly inclined to follow Jor-El's orders so passionately and these so called stones of power held no appeal, but this purpose kept his mind and body occupied. It kept him from going insane. So, every afternoon, he came and practiced. Avoiding impending doom was just a bonus.

"You already possess the ability to find the stones, Kal-El. Focus!"

It was easier said than done. With head filled with a million different sounds and mind troubled by conflicting thoughts, what was he supposed to focus on? Blocking his hearing and clearing his mind had already proven to be insufficient. Concentrating his efforts in locating the stone through sheer will proved to be useless.

_Focus, focus, focus!_

If they were so dangerous, why couldn't Jor-El just tell him where to find the two remaining stones? With his deceased father, everything was a test and Clark was tired of it.

_Focus, focus, focus!_

It was only later, the sky dark and the moon shining high, when Clark lay on his bed, eyes on the ceiling, that he understood the true meaning of focus.

xxxxx

He was at that place again, white and ice all around him. The columns of crystals were high and the structure was unlike any he had ever seen. Clark had developed a fondness for this ice fortress over the past weeks. This was the place he met Lois every night, where passions he was forced to suppress during the day were given free reign. It was a place that felt more real than his own home; that felt like home.

It was the first time he had found himself here alone, though.

"Lois?"

Again and again, he called her name, expecting to see her emerge from behind a clear column and come to him. He heard his own voice echo in the empty space and no other.

"Lois…" He breathed, a sigh escaping his lips, defeated. Clark knew it was only a matter of time before the dreams faded, leaving him bare.

It was only when he spoke her name no more, that a voice answered his call. It wasn't strong and feminine like he had expected, but it was familiar nonetheless.

"Kal-El, my son."

"Jor-El?" Clark could certainly understand meeting his biological father in nightmares. He had never expected to find him here, though. This place of peace.

"It is time, Kal-El, to meet your destiny and become the man you are meant to be. The three must become one."

No protest escaped his angry lips, no frown marred his face. Clark was frozen, not one single muscle in his body answering his command to move. Nothing made sense in this place anymore. And just as this thought fleeted through his troubled mind, he saw the ice fortress fade away. There was only darkness and air; no walls, no ground or ceiling.

Nothing.

And through the nothingness, a sound captured his attention. A drumming, constant and loud, beating almost in synch with his own heart, a sound he realized he could still hear. Clark didn't know what it was, but it had a soothing effect upon him, a strange feeling of safeness and excitement.

_Focus!_

And the concept which had been eluding him for weeks, suddenly seemed simple.

xxxxxx

In retrospect, it was easy.

Countless hours of practice and failed attempts paled into oblivion, when that moment of perfect clarity hit and everything suddenly made sense. As Kal-El, purpose and achievement had always been simple because nothing else mattered; he had been single minded and emotionless. As Clark, his insecurities had aided barrier upon barrier around him, making him a prisoner of his own powers. Two sides of the same person.

He was neither Clark, nor Kal-El in that moment of clarity. He was both and neither at the same time. It was a balance he had never thought possible. And with that new achieved equilibrium, locating the stones and retrieving them was an action resulted by the simple result of a thought.

China and Lionel Luthor.

Clark shook his head as he descended into the caves. The most unlikely of places and the most obvious, he pondered. God only knew how long it would have taken him to find these stones if he had left it to mere chance. Stopping in front of the wall with the concentric symbols drawn in, he stopped to contemplate the black stone on his left hand and the clear one on his right hand. So innocent looking and so potentially dangerous if they were to fall in to the wrong hands.

He may not understand their purpose completely, but experience had taught him just how dangerous they truly were.

He pressed the three appropriate symbols on the wall and, like a vault, the stone to his left slid open, white light spilling from within. With a final breath, Clark took the final steps into the hidden chamber and the last leg of his journey. Whatever happened next would be unknown. And that was a little frightening.

Three stones fit perfectly together upon the alter and glowed as one. The fault lines marking each individual stones shone brighter then dissipated, sealing the stones together and ultimately forming a single, diamond shaped crystal, in a shade none of the individual stones had possessed. It was clear and blue and softly rising from its resting place, beckoning silently to him. Clark reached for it and saw a kaleidoscope of colors erupt behind his eyes and around his body. Heavy as lead, then light as a feather, then gone, like the very air he breathed had been sucked away, to finally back to normal.

If vast amounts of snow and clear blue skies could ever be considered normal to a boy raised in corn filled Kansas.

He didn't know how he knew. He just did. And with more force than he had ever dared impose during any of his football days, Clark chucked the crystal. The shield like stone made a wide arch and disappeared in the middle of the fluffy and untouched snow.

For a heartbeat, nothing happened.

Two heartbeats…

Three heartbeats...

Before the fourth could finish its rhythm, the ground beneath him began to shake. Disbelief and amazement battled within him, as Clark watched long columns of ice rise from the snow and reach to the skies, as if they had a mind of their own. Left and right, they rose, until an ice structure unlike anything he had ever seen, finished growing before his very eyes.

There was nothing else to do than to explore.

And what should have been foreign and unseen, turned out to be profoundly familiar. For as Clark stepped into the fortress, columns of ice and ceiling as high as a skyscraper, déjà vu assaulted his senses. It was the place he dreamt of every night, the scenario to all his nightly fantasies with Lois. The fantastical place he had believed real only in his dreams.

Clark frowned.

Logically, he shouldn't know this place before its construction. Rationally, his dreams were nothing else but that, dreams. Yet, here he was, in a place that was very much real, wondering how and why he could have seen it standing before its creation.

"Kal-El. You have travelled far. A journey has ended, a new journey's about to begin." Like his last dream, Jor-El's voice echoed around him, powerful and intimidating. His doubts turned to anger and grew. Had it all been another manipulation by his biological father? The rebellious part of him wanted to tear the Fortress apart in rage.

"I know this place! Why? What is this? Have you been manipulating my dreams, Jor-El?" He paused, eyes scanning his surroundings. It was hard to direct your resentment at someone you couldn't see. "Haven't you done enough?"

"It was not I who showed you this Fortress, Kal-El."

"Then who?"

"You."

"How is that possible?" Around him, the air stirred as if committed by a sudden wind. "What did I do?"

"For too long, you have denied your destiny and that has brought forth terrible consequences…" There was no time to protest what Clark viewed as Jor-El's twisted view on reality. "However, you have now willingly taken the first step towards the future and your destiny. You must begin your training."

"Willingly? _You_ told me to find those stones!"

"And you ignored my warning until now."

"I don't understand!"

"You have found focus and determination, my son. You have mated."

An unconscious blush rose to his cheeks at his father's words. "That… it? I had s… sex and now I'm ready?"

"No, Kal-El. It is not simply the act of intercourse. You have mated. Now, you must complete your training."

"What does that mean?" There were several smaller crystals incrusted on a platform in front of him, all facing the same direction. One of them detached and floated towards him, soft light emitting from its core. Suddenly, the '_mated'_ part was not as important as the '_training'_ part.

Clark stumbled backwards, away from the hovering crystal. "No, Jor-El, no more games and no more surprises. Tell me what my training is and how long it's going to take!"

"Time is immaterial, Ka-El. The length of your training is entirely up to you."

"Will I…" Clark swallowed hard, suddenly feeling his throat constricting. Though he felt more assured, there was still a twinge of fear for the unknown and the loss of a life he had longed to live. "Will I be able to go home from time to time?"

"It is not optimal for your training to have constant interruptions. Human feelings weaken you, my son."

"No… You're wrong! They make me stronger!" A moment of hesitation, a thought and Clark felt a new surge of hope. Jor-El hadn't said no, after all. "I want to do my training, Jor-El."

"Very good, my son."

"But! I will not be trapped within this fortress. I want breaks every week for me to leave and go home."

"You may leave this fortress every three months and then, only for a day."

Clark considered arguing further, though in the end, he simply agreed. Three months weren't that long and he might be gone the same period of time if he were to go to college away from Kansas. Besides, there were fewer and fewer lines in his list of things to miss. His parents, Chloe and Lois.

He could do this.

"Okay…" He finally reached out to grasp the crystal.

xxxxxxx

"No!"

The word escaped her lips amid a sob, choking its way out of her throat in despair. For a second, Lois couldn't quite remember where she was and what had happened; there was only her heart beating a mile a minute and her lungs burning. Then, the reality of her dream cleared and the desperation that had slowly started to abate, grew exponentially.

_Clark. _

For weeks, she had dreamt of being in his arms. His presence, though simply imagined, had brought comfort to her during such long and lonely hours away from all she had known. To dream of the Ice Fortress empty and dark, no Clark in sight, had left her unsettled. She had screamed his name, climbed over pillars and ice platforms and had found no sign of him. Cold and alone, Lois remembered curling against a crystal column and crying. The pain within her dream had been more than real.

How could her chest hurt so intensively, the sudden void pulling her inward, that breathing became hard. All because of an empty fortress that didn't even exist. It had to mean something, this longing for home.

The only problem was reconciling the thought of home with Smallville, of all places Of all people.

Graduation was two days away. All classes had been taken and all tests had been passed. A ceremony seemed such an inconsequential reason to remain in Germany.

"Home…" Lois sighed and dropped back onto her bed. "What does that even mean?"

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Review and there will be more tomorrow!


	8. Part II Chapter 4

**PART ****II**

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Chapter 4

She had always known this day would come.

Martha had dreaded it, fought against it and tried to convince herself it was avoidable. But, at the end of the day, she had known it was only a matter of time before her dear son Clark would be forced to face his destiny. A destiny that involved a lot more Jor-El then her or Jonathan.

Watching him now, the soft glow of the morning sun tainting the air of her kitchen a warm orange, Martha could see the way her little boy had grown up and could understand that meant spreading his wings. She didn't like it, but she understood. Jonathan, on the other hand, was determined to fight against it.

"Absolutely not, Clark! All out dealings with Jor-El in the past have been proof enough that he cannot be trusted!" Jonathan brushed back his blonde hair in a frustrated move. "Now, he wants you to submit to him for some unexplained training? I will not allow it!"

The red haired mother watched as her son breathed in deeply and calmly answered his father, without uncertainty or lack of respect. He looked truly like a man.

"Dad… I know you don't trust Jor-El, but… It's time. I'm ready and I know that it's time. Jor-El has promised me that I could come back every three months and I will."

"Jor-El cannot be trusted, son. You really think he will keep such a promise?"

"Yes… I do." Clark unfolded his arms and let them drop to his sides. "He has never made promises before."

Jonathan sighed deeply, worry and fear battling for dominance within him.

"Look, dad…" Clark stepped closer to his father and touched his arm in a reassuring manner. "Jor-El may have given birth to me, but you are my father. I know I can make you proud. Just… let me."

He didn't like it. Not one bit. It comes a point in a father's life, however, that one must learn to let go. Jonathan knew that. He certainly didn't like it, but he understood that what Clark was really asking was trust for him, not Jor-El. "I'm already proud of you, son."

Father and son embraced and Martha felt sadness begin to fill her chest. Though still a few days away, this already felt like goodbye.

_It was all too soon. _

xxxxxxxxxx

Graduation came upon them faster than Chloe had thought possible.

The last couple of mounts had been wholly uneventful and felt almost anti-climatic after four years of such a roller coaster ride. It was over, the end of a journey and the beginning of the rest of their lives. Nothing would ever be the same again.

Chloe managed a small, sarcastic smile, at such profound thoughts. Specially after being one so eager for high school to end.

She looked around at her classmates, dressed with long blue gowns like her own. Some carried still their graduation hats upon their heads, while others had tossed theirs up into the sky sometime before. Everyone was wide smiles and bittersweet glances. And she could commiserate with them, knowing she wouldn't see most of these faces again. It was okay, though; they were acquaintances rather than friends.

So few fell under that category.

Lana's face appeared among many, looking a bit lost and lonely. Her relationship with Jason had not ended well and Nell, her only relative, had chosen not to come. Not even Clark, who had been, for so long, a constant in her life, seemed to sustain his devotion anymore. He offered only friendship and a distant one at that, something Lana hadn't taken so well.

Speaking of Clark, there he stood, hugging his mother who had open tears in her eyes. Mr. Kent seemed overly serious, she noted, probably to hide his own sadness. Clark was leaving, after all. He had been planning his backpacking trip for a while now, making sure all loose ends were tied and even finding someone to help his father at the farm. Chloe still couldn't wrap her mind around this new Clark, all grown up and strong minded.

_She would miss him more than anyone else._

Long arms wrapped around her from behind, startling her back to reality. She whipped around, a bright smile flourishing upon her lips at the sight which greeted her… Lois. The cousins embraced. Through phone calls and constant e-mails they had managed to leave their fight in the past and reconquer the close friendship they had always had been fortunate enough to maintain.

"Lois, you are here!"

"I wouldn't miss your graduation, baby. Besides…" Lois grinner widely. "… you and I are going to Metropolis for some serious, probably illegal, celebration."

They embraced once more, a mirth filled laugh escaping the petit blonde. Lois was back!

Over her cousin's shoulder, Chloe caught sight of Calrk's green blue eyes fixed upon them. She knew they hadn't kept in touch, though they might have wanted to. Though the idea hadn't appealed to her, Chloe couldn't deny the pull between them. No matter how jealousy rose up in her throat every time the thought of them together arose.

Pulling slightly away, she smiled and caught Lois' hand in hers.

"Other people have missed you as much as me." Ignoring her cousin's sudden frown and resistant stance, Chloe pulled her towards the Kents. "Mrs. Kent, Mr. Kent! Look who dropped by for a visit.

The older couple turned their way and smiled in welcome. There was no hesitation in either Kent as they embraced Lois dearly. With a wide smile, Lois turned to greet Clark and was met with quite an intense pair of eyes. Chloe couldn't blame her for vacillating and choosing to greet him with a nod and his name, whispered low.

Chloe was also not the only one who noticed the sudden tension between the pair. Martha gazed from her son to the woman she had grown to love as a daughter, while Jonathan wore a look of relieved understanding on his kind face.

Time felt as if suspended and Chloe grew restless. Weren't they going to speak? Do anything? The air buzzed with energy and she half expected it to burst into flames before either of them made a move to converse.

_Maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all._

xxxxxxxxxxxx

She was there.

For long nights he had dreamt of her in his arms, the ache in his heart unexpected. In every dream, she had appeared real, solid and that had brought him comfort, even when he had remained aware of her absence. Now, there she stood, during his waking hours. She was close enough he could touch her, if only he reached out his arm. For a second, he considered her only a mirage, fancies of a parched man trapped in the desert.

But she was really there.

Chloe had her arm around her waist, perhaps needing reassurance of her presence just like him. His mother was talking to her. His father had smiled her way. She was not a figment of his imagination. And she was looking at him with eyes so intense, Clark could feel the intensity of her gaze burning his skin.

_Had she yearned for him as he had for her?_

They didn't speak to each other, allowing the rest of their circle to fill in the silence. They were simply too busy fighting off the magnetic force pulling them to each other and trying not to appear too obvious about it. And the uncertainty… What were they supposed to do now? How to act, what to say. Too much had changed. Too little had changed.

xxxxxxx

They were at the farm, the semi dismantled loft a desolate sight for those who had grown accustomed to its reassuring presence. They couldn't quite explain how they had gotten there and why they had found themselves suddenly alone, only a few feet of air separating them. The details seemed so unimportant.

Clark focused on her heartbeat.

It was going faster than normal and was the only indicator that she felt the same anxiety coursing through his own veins at this unexpected, yet much yearned for, meeting. She looked so beautiful…

"So… you graduated." Lois' voice was soft, her words almost unsure. Clark only nodded yes to her statement, unconsciously stepping forward. The motions of a superficial conversation allowed them to break the silence that had afflicted them, though words to say what they really wished to convey seemed lacking.

"And you?" The sound of his voice sent chills up her spine and Lois had to breathe in deeply, so as not to faint. Her body swayed a step closer to the source of her weakness.

"Me, too." For a long second, their gazes locked, a little of the tension falling away. "You going to college?" Another step from Clark.

"No…"

Lois' trance was briefly broken by his unexpected reply. She frowned. "No?"

"I… My biological father has… contacted me." Clark was shifting, something Lois had learned he did when skirting a question without having to lie outright. "I am going to be… training with him."

"Training?" She could see in his eyes that he wanted to tell her and yet, at the same time, felt it was something he couldn't simply share. Lois decided to let it slide. "I got into Oxford. And Met U."

His lips parted in a proud smile. "Congratulation!"

Lois simply shrugged, her future still strangely blurry. "I'm not sure on a major, yet." Clark's hand on her arm, incredibly warm, sent a shiver up her spine.

_When had he gotten so close?_

"Sometimes, the life we think we'll have is… different than the life we end up having. You'll find your niche." He smiled and she offered a weak laugh in return. He sounded so sure when he spoke like that and yet she knew that insecurities weighted down his soul every day.

"So… I guess, we won't be seeing each other so soon again."

"I guess." Clark stopped closer still, leaving barely no air to hover between their bodies. "Doesn't mean we won't ever see each other again." He was somber and dead serious, making sure she understood his words were not meant to be taken lightly.

"I'd like that."

"Lois… I want you to know that you mean something to me. What happened between us… it mattered to me." Lois bit her lip and caressed the corner of his cheek.

"I know."

Nothing else was spoken, as the air still lingering between them disappeared and lips met in a heated kiss. It was overdue and new, at the same time that it was familiar like the act of coming home.

With sure strokes, Lois caressed his tongue, stopping every few moments to glide her tip of her tongue in the back of Clark's teeth. Not to be outdone, the farmboy followed the underside of her tongue gently, luring her back into dancing. At the same time, hands followed freely their own will, groping buttocks and gripping black hair.

The air between them heated up in no time.

Breathless, Lois broke the kiss and dropped her head back, trying to take in much needed air. Enjoying the opportunity and decisively less breathless than his lover due to his superior lung capacity, Clark trailed a path from her mouth to her ear with the tip of his nose. He blew softly then, eliciting shudders and a moan, before using his tongue once more, this time to trace Lois' outer ear and inviting earlobe.

With a hand gripping his hair and the other placed in his chest, over his fast beating heart, Lois felt the need to feel more of him. Button by button, her nimble fingers managed to expose the warm flesh beneath the light blue shirt he wore. That drove her and him wild.

It still wasn't enough, though.

Clark's shirt hit the floor, uncared for, and the man in question took this opportunity to even the field. Lois's t-shirt joined the pool of blue fabric on the floor.

The brief moment that they had taken to partially undress, was time too much without properly touching and their bodies crashed back together in urgency, mouth fusing together once more.

They kissed with fervor, heavy breaths intermingling as Lois traced all corners of Clark's mouth, chased after by his own need to connect. Meanwhile, Clark's hands, which had been caressing her back, gripped her ribcage, managing to bend her backwards and more easily at his mercy. With his thumbs, he drew circles at the underside of her still covered breasts.

Lois moaned, drawing circles of her own upon his exposed hip, ever so close to the straining Clark junior poking her thigh.

A flick of the wrist and before she knew, Lois found herself with an open bra and Clark's hot mouth traveling lower down her neck to be closer to her newly exposed nipples. All thoughts of keeping up vanished from her mind when his tantalizing breath met with her over sensitive, puckered skin, without actually touching.

_So close._

"You such a tease, Smallville." She sighed, allowing her weight to be supported more fully by Clark's hands. If he weren't keeping her mind muddled, though, Lois was sure to have punched him for chuckling at her comment.

"No hurry, Lois. We have all the time in the world." Who could argue with that, she pondered, as the weeks of separation fell away.

Finally, he enveloped her left nipple with his mouth, using his tongue to trace the aureole and wet its tip. All in a languid pace, of course. The slower he went - not missing a spot – less air seemed to enter her lungs. And never stopping his thumbs from drawing circles at the underside of her breasts.

Sensory overload is what it was.

Just not enough, though.

After time uncountable, Clark circled her waist with his strong arms and brought their bodies even closer together, then lifted her feet clear off the floor. A new kiss consumed their mouths as he easily carried her over to the worn couch. He carried her as if her weight mattered little and eased his tall frame upon the soft surface, draping Lois' body over his.

With breathing heavy, they sat closely facing each other. Various parts of their bodies were touching through their clothes, enticing for things yet to come. Still, it was the stare they shared at that moment that brought about the type of close intimacy neither had ever experienced before.

"I want you, Smallville." Clark leaned forward to kiss her, but Lois drew back. "No… I want _you_."

Clark smiled brilliantly at her declaration and brushed her hair over her shoulder. "I want you to, Lois. Only you."

Clothes came off slowly after that, none of the rush their first time had evoked was present. They explored each other's bodies with touches and kisses, until they found themselves completely bare. With Clark's hands on her hips and Lois' arms around his neck, they moved as one.

Foreplay could only last so long, however. Tilting her hips, Lois sought Clark's manhood with her hand and guided him to her lower lips, rubbing their tender flesh together and eliciting moans all around, until Clark held her still and pushed inside her, filling her with one stroke.

Lois caught her breath, relishing the feeling of being whole, and threw her head back. Clark, too, took a second to savor the feeling of being again sheathed within her inviting walls, before slowly withdrawing. When his cock had only its tip still enclosed, Clark stopped and drove himself within her once more.

Moan.

Again and again, he did this, his pace agonizing slow. More than the pleasure of his skin moving against her walls on the way out, he relished the exquisite bliss of driving hard back inside her willing body. Lois moans only encouraged him on, as did her arching body, which offered to him such succulent breasts for feasting.

He licked a puckered nipple, then the other, before latching onto the first and sucking mercilessly. Lois tasted so good, he could not bring himself to be gentle. Lois's hand gripping the hair at the back of his head encouraged no gentleness either. It had been too long. It would be too long before they could be together like this again.

As their pace grew faster and the separation of their bodies smaller, Lois and Clark met forehead to forehead, eyes gazing intensively. Their breaths mingled, their noses bumped together and their bodies moved as one, sweat glistening their skin. The intimacy of this act was so strong, it could not be described as anything but bliss.

When the pleasure building between them reached its climax and they could not hold back any longer, Clark reached between their bodies and stroked her clit, while his mouth grabbed hold of hers once more. In a tidal wave of immeasurable intensity, they came together. Shudders wracked their joined bodies and drowned shouts of ecstasy breathed from one mouth to the other.

Afterwards, exhausted and still joined, they rested as they were, content in the knowledge that perfection had been reached.

Lucky for them, no one came to interrupt their semi public encounter for hours thereafter.

xxxxxxxxx

The future was peeking over the horizon, barely discernable to the naked eye, and so much was still composed of dreams and uncertainties. They didn't know what their lives would turn out to be like, couldn't fathom the ending to this story. They weren't making any promises and yet, in the air hanging between them, a promise lingered of paths eventually crossing once more.

In the final hour they spent together, there were no tears, no sadness and no doubt.

Only love and a bond strong enough to last through anything.

xxxxxxxxx

THE END

* * *

Epilogues (yes, as in plural, as in two) should follow soon. I hope you have enjoyed the ride. :D


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